Record, Round 2: 5-6
Overall Record: 18-13
Total Outlay, Round 2: $1,100.00
Total Return, Round 2: $1,240.85
Gain, Round 2: $140.85
Overall Gain: $1,667.24
The Round of 32 went unlike most Rounds of 32. I'm not talking about the blowouts, although there were so many of them (LSU-Maryland and, more importantly, Duke-UCF) that in has put a damper on this year's edition of March Madness. But what I am talking about are the lack of upsets. Note the seed numbers, ordered here in descending order within the four regions: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-5, 1-2-3-12. I remember the exact order of seeds for another tournament, and through Wikipedia I just found the year: 2009, exactly a decade ago, the Sweet 16 comprised the exact same 16 seeds. In fact, the "Cinderella" came from the Pac-10/12; Oregon this year, Arizona then. I don't remember how thrilling (or not) the Round of 32 was ten years ago, but like back in 2009, it showed that the favorites won out. This year, through the explosion of routs, the favorites really won out.
Because of that I thought my bets, leaning heavily (as usual) on underdogs, would sink my round. It did not. It helped that the three favorites I gambled on (Michigan St., Auburn and Oregon) all beat the spread. But Central Florida executed the perfect plan to (almost) take out the Blue Devils, and I got extraordinarily lucky that Iowa found its heart and came back from 20+ down to force Overtime on Tennessee; the Hawkeyes lost, but only by six, thus beating its +8 spread. Wish the four-team parlay came through, but I also wished I did not put in 11), which was the number of the parlay itself. Have to catch those errors. But I wound up with a modest profit.
---
I have heard that this year, the top eight teams are noticeably better than the rest. I also note that in 2009, the Elite 8 turned out to have a pair of 1-2 matchups and a pair of 1-3 matchups. Will history repeat itself in 2019?
1) Florida St. +7 1/2 (Uh, no. Well, history will repeat itself -- from last year, when the Seminoles dispatched Gonzaga in this same round [and, I think, this same West Region]. But FSU still has the length and athleticism to patrol the paint on one end and bull to the hole in the other. This is a chic dog pick, so I'm wondering why the odds are so much in the Bulldogs' favor. But I will bet. ...) $100
2) Texas Tech +2 (The Red Raiders have the top Adjusted Defensive Efficiency Rating according to Ken Pomeroy, and even though I think that statistic should be downplayed in the wake of such good shooting this days [and especially the last round], I think they could be too much to handle for a Michigan club that can get cold at times) $100
3) Oregon +8 1/2 (I still don't trust Virginia. Plus the Ducks are playing a lot better, and in particular shooting the three a lot better, lately) $50
4) Michigan St. -6 (I really don't know how LSU is surviving despite losing Head Coach Will Wade. And I'm not really high on the Spartans. This is a flyer, so it's a small-bet flyer) $50
5) Virginia Tech +7 (The Golden Knights unveiled the perfect strategy to defeat Duke. Plus, the Hokies defeated the Blue Devils at home during the regular season. The Hokies have the muscle to go toe-to-toe with Duke, and they sure as hell aren't scared of them either) $150
6) Parlay 1) and 5) together, for $50.
Good luck!
Overall Record: 18-13
Total Outlay, Round 2: $1,100.00
Total Return, Round 2: $1,240.85
Gain, Round 2: $140.85
Overall Gain: $1,667.24
The Round of 32 went unlike most Rounds of 32. I'm not talking about the blowouts, although there were so many of them (LSU-Maryland and, more importantly, Duke-UCF) that in has put a damper on this year's edition of March Madness. But what I am talking about are the lack of upsets. Note the seed numbers, ordered here in descending order within the four regions: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-5, 1-2-3-12. I remember the exact order of seeds for another tournament, and through Wikipedia I just found the year: 2009, exactly a decade ago, the Sweet 16 comprised the exact same 16 seeds. In fact, the "Cinderella" came from the Pac-10/12; Oregon this year, Arizona then. I don't remember how thrilling (or not) the Round of 32 was ten years ago, but like back in 2009, it showed that the favorites won out. This year, through the explosion of routs, the favorites really won out.
Because of that I thought my bets, leaning heavily (as usual) on underdogs, would sink my round. It did not. It helped that the three favorites I gambled on (Michigan St., Auburn and Oregon) all beat the spread. But Central Florida executed the perfect plan to (almost) take out the Blue Devils, and I got extraordinarily lucky that Iowa found its heart and came back from 20+ down to force Overtime on Tennessee; the Hawkeyes lost, but only by six, thus beating its +8 spread. Wish the four-team parlay came through, but I also wished I did not put in 11), which was the number of the parlay itself. Have to catch those errors. But I wound up with a modest profit.
---
I have heard that this year, the top eight teams are noticeably better than the rest. I also note that in 2009, the Elite 8 turned out to have a pair of 1-2 matchups and a pair of 1-3 matchups. Will history repeat itself in 2019?
1) Florida St. +7 1/2 (Uh, no. Well, history will repeat itself -- from last year, when the Seminoles dispatched Gonzaga in this same round [and, I think, this same West Region]. But FSU still has the length and athleticism to patrol the paint on one end and bull to the hole in the other. This is a chic dog pick, so I'm wondering why the odds are so much in the Bulldogs' favor. But I will bet. ...) $100
2) Texas Tech +2 (The Red Raiders have the top Adjusted Defensive Efficiency Rating according to Ken Pomeroy, and even though I think that statistic should be downplayed in the wake of such good shooting this days [and especially the last round], I think they could be too much to handle for a Michigan club that can get cold at times) $100
3) Oregon +8 1/2 (I still don't trust Virginia. Plus the Ducks are playing a lot better, and in particular shooting the three a lot better, lately) $50
4) Michigan St. -6 (I really don't know how LSU is surviving despite losing Head Coach Will Wade. And I'm not really high on the Spartans. This is a flyer, so it's a small-bet flyer) $50
5) Virginia Tech +7 (The Golden Knights unveiled the perfect strategy to defeat Duke. Plus, the Hokies defeated the Blue Devils at home during the regular season. The Hokies have the muscle to go toe-to-toe with Duke, and they sure as hell aren't scared of them either) $150
6) Parlay 1) and 5) together, for $50.
Good luck!
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