Another Win for the Sportsbooks: Upsets oust Gonzaga and Arizona

Fittingly, the opening night of the Sweet Sixteen Thursday went sour in a hurry for the top seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs and Arizona Wildcats, as the two No. 1 seeds were eliminated from the tournament. 

The No. 4 Arkansas Razorbacks (+9.5) won 74-68 over the Gonzaga Bulldogs, and the No. 5 Houston Cougars (+1.5) topped the Arizona Wildcats 72-60 as a smaller dog.

In Thursday’s other two games, the No. 2 seeds each won. The Villanova Wildcats (-3.5) covered the margin with a 63-55 win over the No. 11 Michigan Wolverines, and the Duke Blue Devils (-1.5) also covered the spread in a 78-73 win over the No. 3 Texas Tech Red Raiders.

It’s definitely worth noting that Texas Tech opened as a 1.5-point favorite at most sportsbooks, and then there was line movement leading into Thursday’s game making Duke a 1.5-point favorite at most books. 

A few other interesting trends stand out from released betting insights.

At BetMGM, the Razorbacks received 62 percent of the moneyline bets, but just 18 percent of the money wagered, so the upset over the top-seeded Bulldogs was definitely a welcomed one for the sportsbook. 

After all, Gonzaga (+320) was the favorite to win the Men’s NCAA National Championship and had received the second highest ticket (8.1%) and handle (12.1%) percentages at BetMGM.

RELATED: College Basketball National Championship Betting Trends

The bigger win for BetMGM might have been Arizona losing, though. 

https://twitter.com/BetMGM/status/1507212712551624706

Check out the latest comprehensive and most trusted Sportsbook Reviews by SBR here.

To add further context, Houston received just 37 percent of the spread bets and 43 percent of the handle, whereas the Cougars moneyline took in 52 percent of bets but just 42 percent of the handle.

It was similar at DraftKings Sportsbook.

Arkansas did receive 57 percent of the spread handle, but the Razorbacks moneyline was hardly even sprinkled and accounted for just 18 percent of the handle.

The split was even more drastic in the Arizona-Houston game. The Cougars received just 45 percent of the spread and 28 percent of the moneyline handles.

While the books took a hit with the Villanova and Duke wins, it’s definitely worth noting that just 28 percent of moneyline bets and 48 percent of the handle were on the Wildcats to beat the Wolverines at BetMGM.

Updated March Madness Odds

https://twitter.com/DKSportsbook/status/1507215373715877894https://twitter.com/FDSportsbook/status/1507216735061127208

Even though the odds have shifted dramatically for Thursday’s winners, it’s important to remember if the Kansas Jayhawks (-7.5) beat the Providence Friars on Friday, the Jayhawks will likely see their championship odds dip considerably. 

The Purdue Boilermakers (-12.5) would also likely have much shorter odds with a win over the Saint Peter’s Peacocks.

RELATED: Cinderella Watch: Bettors Flocking to Back Saint Peter’s

However, if there are more upsets in the Sweet Sixteen round of play, Houston, Duke and Villanova will almost surely see shorter numbers entering the Elite Eight.Make sure to keep an eye on our Live Odds page throughout the week to get the best lines possible and connect with others in the SBR community on our popular sports betting forum.