Betting on a Buzzer-Beater in Sweet 16 or Elite 8 Pays 7-1
By Robert Duff in College Basketball
Updated: April 8, 2020 at 9:39 am EDTPublished:
- The 2019 NCAA Tournament has yet to see a buzzer-beater finish
- Books are offering 7-1 odds on a buzzer beater occurring this weekend in the Sweet 16 or Elite 8
- There were two buzzer-beaters in the 2018 NCAA Tournament
Favorites dominating, buzzer-beaters not falling. Who took the madness out of March Madness?
How many buzzer-beaters will we see in this year's #MarchMadness? pic.twitter.com/FbrEY2bvvv
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 20, 2019
Sportsbooks are wondering the same thing. They’re offering 7-1 odds on there being a buzzer-beater this weekend during the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 portions of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.
Odds on a Buzzer-Beater in Sweet 16 or Elite 8 of 2019 NCAA Men’s Tournament Final Four
| Will there Be a Buzzer-Beater in the Sweet 16 or Elite 8 of 2019 March Madness? | Odds |
|---|---|
| Yes | +700 |
| No | -1500 |
*Odds taken 03/26/19
Including the First Four play-in games, through the first two rounds of March Madness, the average margin of victory has been 14 points. There were just five games that saw the two teams finish withing three points of each other.
The most exciting ending was the Duke-UCF second-round game. Aubrey Dawkins’ attempted put back of a missed BJ Taylor bank shot rimmed out with two seconds left and the Blue Devils survived 77-76.
Pair of Buzzer-Beaters in 2018
Last year’s NCAA tournament featured just two buzzer-beater finishes. One was fashioned by the Cinderella of the Tournament, 11-seed Loyola-Chicago.
The Ramblers started their journey to the Final Four with a 64-62 win over the Miami Hurricanes on Donte Ingram’s long-range three.
In the second round, Michigan’s Jordan Poole hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Wolverines a 64-63 verdict over the Houston Cougars.
What’s the Play?
Note that both of last year’s buzzer-beaters were in the first two rounds of NCAA Tournament play.
In 2017, there was one buzzer-beater in the Sweet 16/Elite 8 phase of March Madness when the Florida Gators edged the Wisconsin Badgers 84-83 in overtime of an East Regional semifinal game.
In 2017, there was one buzzer-beater in the Sweet 16/Elite 8 phase of March Madness when the Florida Gators edged the Wisconsin Badgers.
Prior to that, you’ve got to go all the way back to the 2009, when the Villanova Wildcats downed the Pittsburgh Panthers 78-76 in the East Regional final, to find another buzzer-beating finish in the Sweet 16/Elite 8 rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
So, if you do the math, that’s one buzzer-beater in the last 24 Sweet 16/Elite 8 contests, and two over the past 132 games.
Those are not 7-1 odds. Your bet here is no.
Pick: No (-1500)
Sports Writer
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
