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Hoops Hopes in Sin City
By JENNIFER FORSYTH
March 28, 2008 6:28 p.m.
LAS VEGAS -- When Xavier led West Virginia by 18 early in the first half, it looked like the Las Vegas bookmakers blew it on the first of four Sweet 16 games played Thursday night for the chance to advance to the Elite Eight in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. After all, the point spread on the game was one -- an indication that the pro prognosticators thought the teams were fairly evenly matched.
Paul Antonson
But the veterans in the sports book at Caesars Palace knew patience is required. As West Virginia mounted a comeback and closed the gap to seven points by halftime, Ed Polis, a grocery store manager from Delran, N.J., nodded that the bookmakers know what they were doing. "They are not wrong very often," says Mr. Polis.
True enough. Third-seeded Xavier needed overtime to beat the seventh-seeded Mountaineers, 79-75, as gamblers and fans alike packed in close to the big-screen televisions while the final minutes ticked by. During the extra session, a pocket of Xavier fans in the center of the room chanted, "De-FENSE." This impassioned plea prompted ridicule from West Virginia fans standing behind them, who pointed out that the Musketeers were unlikely to hear their cheering in Phoenix, where the West Region game was being played.
Perhaps only the Super Bowl rivals the excitement that unfurls in Las Vegas for the three weeks of March Madness, which will reach its crescendo next weekend with the three games (two semifinals and the championship game) of the Final Four. Keep in mind -- despite the ubiquitous office pools -- Nevada casinos are the only place in the U.S. where betting on college games is actually legal.
Professional gamblers love the blitz of tournament games with its 65 teams --some from programs who have played to national television audiences all season; some from schools few have heard of. Added to the brew in the casino sports betting rooms are the oodles of fans from the competing universities, including students on spring break who pour into Las Vegas in full regalia, ready to bet and bellow for the home team. Nowhere is this atmosphere, where men outnumber women about 10 to 1, more down and dirty than at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas strip.
Still, for Mr. Polis and his six buddies who came to town for a weekend of basketball betting, the cigar-sweetened air seemed rather subdued this weekend, considering so much money and team loyalty were on the line. The group visited Vegas for the first round of games last year. Contingents from small schools crowded around the tiny tables with flat-screen televisions, taking up all the seats as early as 5:30 a.m. At one point during the weekend, CBS Sports switched away from a close game and many in the room mistakenly thought Caesars had switched the channel. Irate fans climbed on the tables and threw mini-basketballs at the screens while yelling for casino officials to turn back to the other game. "I thought we were going to have a mini-riot," said Jack Armstrong, 40, a racehorse owner from Philadelphia, Pa.
Typical of a calmer crowd Thursday night was Alex Ford, 39, of Montclair, Va. Wearing a North Carolina cap, he smiled pleasantly as UNC shook off a slow start against Washington State to win by 21. Mr. Ford had $500 riding on the game, confident the top-seeded Tar Heels would advance. Otherwise, he wouldn't have bet. "It's bad juju to bet against your own team." On the flip side, Roger Henderson, a Wazzu grad who retired in February from the U.S. forest service, was relieved he bet only $20 on his fourth-seeded Cougars. "It was a heart bet," he said.
More unsentimental in his wagering was Shawn Gibson, 32, a physical therapist from Houston, who bet $20 -- straight-up, without regard to the point spread -- on the underdog in every game of the Sweet 16, saying that "most of that top teams don't look that good this year. UCLA has won a lot of close games."
Alas, the favorite won in three out of four games Thursday -- including top-seeded UCLA in, yes, another surprisingly close game, this time against 12th-seeded Western Kentucky. The only lower seed to advance was No. 3 Louisville over No. 2 Tennessee.
Perhaps Mr. Gibson will have better luck in Friday's games.
Write to Jennifer Forsyth at [email protected]
By JENNIFER FORSYTH
March 28, 2008 6:28 p.m.
LAS VEGAS -- When Xavier led West Virginia by 18 early in the first half, it looked like the Las Vegas bookmakers blew it on the first of four Sweet 16 games played Thursday night for the chance to advance to the Elite Eight in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. After all, the point spread on the game was one -- an indication that the pro prognosticators thought the teams were fairly evenly matched.
Paul Antonson But the veterans in the sports book at Caesars Palace knew patience is required. As West Virginia mounted a comeback and closed the gap to seven points by halftime, Ed Polis, a grocery store manager from Delran, N.J., nodded that the bookmakers know what they were doing. "They are not wrong very often," says Mr. Polis.
True enough. Third-seeded Xavier needed overtime to beat the seventh-seeded Mountaineers, 79-75, as gamblers and fans alike packed in close to the big-screen televisions while the final minutes ticked by. During the extra session, a pocket of Xavier fans in the center of the room chanted, "De-FENSE." This impassioned plea prompted ridicule from West Virginia fans standing behind them, who pointed out that the Musketeers were unlikely to hear their cheering in Phoenix, where the West Region game was being played.
Perhaps only the Super Bowl rivals the excitement that unfurls in Las Vegas for the three weeks of March Madness, which will reach its crescendo next weekend with the three games (two semifinals and the championship game) of the Final Four. Keep in mind -- despite the ubiquitous office pools -- Nevada casinos are the only place in the U.S. where betting on college games is actually legal.
Professional gamblers love the blitz of tournament games with its 65 teams --some from programs who have played to national television audiences all season; some from schools few have heard of. Added to the brew in the casino sports betting rooms are the oodles of fans from the competing universities, including students on spring break who pour into Las Vegas in full regalia, ready to bet and bellow for the home team. Nowhere is this atmosphere, where men outnumber women about 10 to 1, more down and dirty than at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas strip.
Still, for Mr. Polis and his six buddies who came to town for a weekend of basketball betting, the cigar-sweetened air seemed rather subdued this weekend, considering so much money and team loyalty were on the line. The group visited Vegas for the first round of games last year. Contingents from small schools crowded around the tiny tables with flat-screen televisions, taking up all the seats as early as 5:30 a.m. At one point during the weekend, CBS Sports switched away from a close game and many in the room mistakenly thought Caesars had switched the channel. Irate fans climbed on the tables and threw mini-basketballs at the screens while yelling for casino officials to turn back to the other game. "I thought we were going to have a mini-riot," said Jack Armstrong, 40, a racehorse owner from Philadelphia, Pa.
Typical of a calmer crowd Thursday night was Alex Ford, 39, of Montclair, Va. Wearing a North Carolina cap, he smiled pleasantly as UNC shook off a slow start against Washington State to win by 21. Mr. Ford had $500 riding on the game, confident the top-seeded Tar Heels would advance. Otherwise, he wouldn't have bet. "It's bad juju to bet against your own team." On the flip side, Roger Henderson, a Wazzu grad who retired in February from the U.S. forest service, was relieved he bet only $20 on his fourth-seeded Cougars. "It was a heart bet," he said.
More unsentimental in his wagering was Shawn Gibson, 32, a physical therapist from Houston, who bet $20 -- straight-up, without regard to the point spread -- on the underdog in every game of the Sweet 16, saying that "most of that top teams don't look that good this year. UCLA has won a lot of close games."
Alas, the favorite won in three out of four games Thursday -- including top-seeded UCLA in, yes, another surprisingly close game, this time against 12th-seeded Western Kentucky. The only lower seed to advance was No. 3 Louisville over No. 2 Tennessee.
Perhaps Mr. Gibson will have better luck in Friday's games.
Write to Jennifer Forsyth at [email protected]