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03/18/2010 - Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The ninth-seeded Northern Iowa Panthers mix it up with the eighth-seeded UNLV Runnin' Rebels in the first round of the NCAA Tournament's Midwest Regional tonight at the Ford Center. The winner of this game will move on to face either Kansas or Lehigh in the second round on Saturday.
For the second year in a row, the Panthers swept both the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and tourney titles to earn their spot in the Field of 65. UNI boasts a healthy 28-4 overall mark, helping the program to its highest seed ever in this event. The Panthers own a 1-5 all-time mark in the NCAA Tournament and are in search of their first win since 1990.
As for the Rebels, they earned their first at-large bid to the Big Dance since 2000 after falling short in the Mountain West Conference Tournament championship game on Saturday. Overall, this is UNLV's 17th trip to the NCAA Tournament and its third in the past four years. The program is 33-15 all-time in this event, including an impressive 13-2 mark in the first round.
Tonight's game marks the first-ever meeting between UNLV and UNI on the hardwood.
The Panthers are an experienced group, as nine of their top 10 players, including all five starters, participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago. Jordan Eglseder, a seven-foot center, is the team's leading scorer (12.0 ppg) as well as rebounder (7.3 rpg) and figures to make a big impact in this event. Adam Koch ranks second in both departments, as the MVC Player of the year is churning out 11.8 ppg and 4.9 rpg. Kwadzo Ahelegbe tacks on 10.7 ppg for UNI, which ranks second in the nation in scoring defense, allowing a mere 54.3 ppg.
The Rebels offer a bit more of a scoring punch than the Panthers, as they are netting 73.3 ppg and making good on 46.2 percent of their field goals. UNLV though, can also play a some defense, recording 7.8 steals per game and holding opponents to just 39.8 percent shooting from the floor. Tre'Von Willis is the go-to-guy for UNLV, as he averages a team-high 17.3 ppg, to go with 3.4 apg. Chace Stanback is another versatile threat and he puts up 10.7 ppg, while leading the squad with 5.8 rpg and 53 steals. Running the offense for the Rebels is Oscar Bellfield, who distributes 4.8 apg.
<< Cougars and Gators collide in West Regional action
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Back in the NCAA Tournament after a two-
year absence, the Florida Gators open first-round play of the 72nd annual
event this afternoon as they tangle with the BYU Cougars in the West Regional
at the Ford Ce
<< Top-seeded Kansas opens tournament play against Lehigh
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks begin
their quest for a national title tonight, as they take on the 16th-seeded
Lehigh Mountain Hawks in the first round of the NCAA Tournament's Midwest
Regional at the Ford C
<< Grizzlies battle Lobos in first round of 2010 NCAA Tournament
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The first round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament's
East Region features a matchup between the third-seeded New Mexico Lobos and
the 14th-seeded Montana Grizzlies.
The winner of this tilt will battle either sixth-se
<< No. 1 seed Kentucky opens NCAA Tournament against 16th-seeded ETSU
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Kentucky Wildcats begin play
in the 2010 NCAA Tournament with first-round clash against the 16th-seeded
East Tennessee State Buccaneers in the East Region.
The winner of this clash will take
Wake Forest and Texas do battle in 2010 NCAA Tournament >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The East Region of the 2010 NCAA Tournament
features a first-round matchup between the eighth-seeded Texas Longhorns and
the ninth-seeded Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
Awaiting the winner of this tilt is a sec
Washington and Marquette meet in first round of 2010 NCAA Tournament >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The sixth-seeded Marquette Golden Eagles and
the 11th-seeded Washington Huskies will meet in the first round of the NCAA
Tournament's East Region.
Up next for the winner of this contest is a second-round clash
Second-seeded Villanova takes on Robert Morris in first-round action >>
Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-seeded Robert Morris Colonials will
have a tough task this afternoon in the South Region, as they take on the
second-seeded Villanova Wildcats in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at
the Dunkin' D
Bears and Bearkats collide in South Regional action >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Playing in their second NCAA Tournament in
the last three seasons, the Baylor Bears will tangle with the Sam Houston
State Bearkats in first round action of the South Region at New Orleans Arena
this afternoon
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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