Princeton's odds to beat Arizona were so long moneyline bettors can now afford tuition there
Princeton pulled off the improbable Thursday and knocked off 2-seed Arizona in the first round of the NCAA men’s tournament.
How improbable was the win? Well, for starters Arizona was a Final Four pick for a lot of people, including President Joe Biden, who picked the Wildcats as his national champion.
Safe to say his bracket is done.
Princeton had moneyline odds upwards of +800 at different sportsbooks, and as long as +900. Entering the tournament, 15-seeds were just 10-138 against 2-seeds. There was no way the Tigers were supposed to beat Arizona.
Then they beat Arizona, cashing odds so long a $100 bettor would be up $825.
DOWN GOES ARIZONA!!!
PRINCETON (+825 ML) PULLS OFF THE UPSET pic.twitter.com/g5VJQZ54Jq
— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) March 16, 2023
Unfortunately, a large majority of bettors went the opposite direction and put their faith in the favorite. At BetMGM, 60% of tickets picked Arizona to cover a 14.5-point spread.
An unwise bettor at Caesars put $150,000 on Arizona to win, a wager that would’ve only netted $12,500. Had they put that money on Princeton, the bet would have won more than $1 million.
A bettor at @CaesarsSports bet $150,000 on Arizona to beat Princeton. Would have netted $12,500.
Princeton is going to win.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) March 16, 2023
This is what March Madness is all about.