UNLV loss buoys sports books

The chaotic swings between Bud Light commercials can drive even the calmest bettor to the brink of psychosis and insanity quicker than a UNLV fan watching the Rebels try to execute a zone offense.

That ineptitude left many Las Vegans wallowing in misery over yet another early exit for the hometown team. California’s 64-61 win also left some bettors in a tough situation.

Several sports books posted the Mountain West’s total victories in the tournament at 4½, and UNLV’s early departure left those holding “over” tickets in a tough spot.

Boise State also dropped its opening game, and then came the ultimate disaster for league commissioner Craig Thompson and anyone who made the mistake of betting “over” on that prop as New Mexico lost to Harvard late in the evening. Only Colorado State survived the gallows.

Jimmy Vaccaro, director of public relations for William Hill sports books, said the under, which now almost is sure to cash, would be a winner for the house after money flowed in on the over.

He said William Hill books also took significant action on Anthony Bennett’s points and rebounds to go over 25½. The UNLV freshman exceeded that number with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Vaccaro was excited about how many customers played the props.

“These things are more palatable than we thought they were for the bettors as far as the college basketball props,” Vaccaro said. “These things generate so much interest in the NFL, where there is so much star power and guys are more recognizable, but we have done good handle on these.”

UNLV’s failure to cover was good news for the books at William Hill and the Stratosphere, and overall handle was up at both properties.

“We came out ahead on that one,” said Ed Malinowski, race and sports book director at the Stratosphere.

The most chaotic point-spread decision on a relatively uneventful day from that standpoint happened in the first game.

Michigan State, which opened as an 11-point favorite over Valparaiso, held a 49-22 lead with 14 minutes left and still looked like a sure point-spread winner with a 21-point edge and 2:17 to play.

Fans holding Spartans tickets already were in line to cash when the Crusaders scored the game’s final 10 points, including a steal and dunk in the closing seconds, to make the final margin 65-54, right on the opening number.

The game closed 10 or 9½ at most books around town, once again underscoring the importance of getting a good number.

Despite the late flurry of points, the game was one of six among the first eight to go under the total. Only the Wichita State-Pittsburgh and Butler-Bucknell games went over their totals, and both were because of late-game free-throw situations after they had gone well under in the first half.

The trend was halted later in the day, and unders finished 6-10 on Thursday. Favorites finished the first full day of the tournament at 9-7.

Malinowski said the Stratosphere won three of the day’s four biggest decisions as bettors favored Marquette, Pittsburgh and New Mexico. Virginia Commonwealth’s rout over Akron was a favorable outcome for the players.

Michigan State’s late-game slide did not prevent bettors from riding the Spartans in the next round. Tom Izzo’s team opened as a 4½-point favorite over Memphis in Saturday’s third round and immediately was bet up to 5½.

Top-seeded Gonzaga’s lackluster effort in surviving against Southern, combined with Wichita State’s thrashing of Pittsburgh, appeared to impact bettors’ opinions of the teams. The Bulldogs opened as 7-point favorites for Saturday’s game but quickly were bet down to 6.

Also, Marquette is a 2½-point favorite over Butler and Saint Louis a 4-point choice over Oregon.

First things first: 16 more “second” round games are today.

Though the early rash of unders wiped out many parlays Thursday, Malinowski said bettors already were playing parlays with more favorites in today’s games.

At Lucky’s, Vaccaro said underdog money has shown on Albany, Florida Gulf Coast, Iowa State and Temple.

Also expect money to come in against San Diego State, considering the performance of its leaguemates.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj.