March Madness First Round Biggest Consensus Line Movers
By Matt De Saro
March Madness is one of the most wagered events in the entire world and this year will be no different. The second that sportsbooks started taking action on the first round of games, some lines started to shift almost immediately. These early line moves to help us better understand where the sharp money is heading and, in turn, make better bets. Generally speaking, games that are of the most interest to whales are the first games to see their lines shift. It’s not an exact science but we can take some messages from this movement. With that in mind, let us take a look at a couple of games that have already seen their share of odds movement.
No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 16 Georgia State
It should come as no surprise that the Gonzaga Bulldogs opened as massive favorites to beat the Georgia State Panthers in the opening round. The Bulldogs have been routinely blowing out almost every team they come across and won 19-of-20 games to end the season. What is a little surprising is that consensus numbers have the spread moving in favor of Georgia State.
It’s odd to see a public darling getting bet against in the early going of a big game like this. But the sharps didn’t seem to like that opening number too much and have bet it down to 23 where it is at most books including WynnBET Sportsbook.
No. 16 Wright State Raiders vs. No. 16. Bryant Bulldogs
While technically a First Four game, the winner of this matchup earns a spot in the dance and is no less important than a first-round matchup. The Wright State Raiders opened as 1.5 points favorites but the line was subsequently bet all the way up to 3.5 where it currently sits.
This could be due to the fact that this game is taking place in Dayton Ohio and is kind of a home game for the Raiders. But that doesn’t overshadow the fact that the Bryant Bulldogs are a dangerous team that some think should be favored here. If you are one of those people, you have to be happy about this line movement as Bryant’s ML odds are all the way up to +130 right now.