UMBC became the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 seed with their shocking 20-point victory on Friday night in the NCAA Tournament.
Despite a 16 never beating a 1, and despite Virginia being a massive favorite (and the tournament’s top overall seed), someone actually placed an $800 bet at The Venetian on UMBC winning straight up.
In this bet, UMBC was +2000 on the moneyline (or, 20-to-1), which honestly feels a little low when you again consider that a 16 has literally never beaten a 1. Still, this lucky person turned their $800 into $16,800:
https://twitter.com/jsimbal/status/974859154861965312
At +2000 UMBC is the second-biggest moneyline underdog upset in NCAA tournament history. Norfolk State was +2250 against Missouri in 2012. MTSU-MSU 2015 was +1500, UAB was +1000 against Iowa St same year, & 2010 Ohio vs Georgetown was +925.
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) March 17, 2018
And the William Hill sportsbooks say they had six $100 moneyline bets on UMBC.
William Hill says it has six $100 bets for UMBC to win straight up. Pays $2,500 each.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) March 17, 2018
The betting on this game certainly didn’t go as well for most folks.
Risking $20,000 to win $870 on a three-team moneyline parlay on Virginia, Purdue and North Carolina. #Madness https://t.co/jekVp9S6NJ
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) March 16, 2018
Worst Bet Of The Night: A guy bet $1,294 on Virginia at a @williamhillus book to win straight up. It pays $12.95 if Virginia comes back to win!!!!
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) March 17, 2018
Now, if you have money to throw around like that, you’re probably doing okay for yourself anyway.
UPDATE: Here’s another lucky bettor.
Amazing. A bettor @WilliamHillUS hit a $40 two-team moneyline parlay on Marshall and UMBC. It paid $7,280.
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) March 17, 2018
