Many USA sportsbook sites host betting lines for March Madness games throughout the tournament. If you’ve been following from the start, you’ll know that a lot of people’s wagers have already bounced. In true March Madness fashion, we’ve already seen 2 major upsets. That number will likely rise as these next rounds play out.
One of the biggest upsets was #6 Miami losing to #11 Loyola. The ACC is strong in this year’s tournament and has many teams. A lot of people picked the Hurricanes to go through, but that isn’t how things worked out for the men in white. This was one of the most exciting games of the tournament so far and might go down as one of the year’s best. It was down to the wire, with both teams trading shots with less than a minute to go. Loyola managed to snag a defensive rebound and decided to run the ball down without taking their last timeout. Donte Ingram received the ball past the top of the arc and shot a no-hesitation three-pointer. The arena was silent as the ball floated through the air and into the net—then, an eruption. Loyola went up by one point with no time in regulation. Further review brought back 0.3 on the clock, but the Hurricanes had no chance of making a play. Down goes an ACC team projected to make it at least a couple rounds.
Another big upset came with the Arizona Wildcats losing to the Buffalo Bulls. A #4 seed lost to a #13 seed in spectacular fashion, much to the chagrin of many people who had Arizona making it a lot farther on their brackets. The game was close at halftime with Buffalo up by 2. Buffalo began to run away with it in the second quarter. Arizona tried to fight back, but everything was going in for the Bulls. The final score was 89-68.
If you ask a lot of people, Oklahoma should have been nowhere near the tournament. Some think that Trae Young’s celebrity status granted them a spot, and maybe so, but they were exposed against Rhode Island in the first round. Young had an impressive game with 28 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists, but basketball is a team sport and their chemistry was lacking. The Rams went on to win 83-78 and send the Sooners home. It’s a bad year in sports for Oklahoma fans.
This is why basketball betting is so back-and-forth, but it is what makes people enjoy it so much. Teams like Duke, UNC, Villanova and Kansas always make it through to the end, but they are not immune from upsets either. The first round may weed out the teams that shouldn’t be there, but it also puts a spotlight on underdog teams you didn’t think about.