Michigan not only captured an extra $1-million prize by winning the Players Era tournament, but the Wolverines also now find themselves ahead of every other college basketball team on BetMGM’s odds list to cut down the nets in March.
Key Takeaways
- Michigan has gone from +2,500 to +650 at BetMGM to win the NCAA Tournament.
- The Wolverines are the favorites at most sportsbooks but still lag behind Purdue at Caesars.
- Winning the Players Era title drew a lot of attention from futures bettors.
"Michigan is the new favorite to win the NCAA Tournament after an impressive run to the Players Era title last week in Vegas,” BetMGM senior trader Michael Ranftle said. “In the last week, 40% of the money has been wagered on the Wolverines to win March Madness."
The Wolverines went from +1,800 last week to +650 by Monday afternoon after beating San Diego State, Auburn, and Gonzaga by an impressive combined 90 points. They took home $1 million for their participation and an additional $1 million for winning the tournament, which will be allocated to the school’s name, image, and likeness fund.
Michigan improved to 7-0 with its hot run in Las Vegas and moved up to No. 3 in the AP Top 25 poll.
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Odds movement
The Wolverines are +750 favorites at FanDuel and DraftKings. Caesars Sportsbook also gives Michigan those odds, but the online operator has Purdue (+700) ahead.
Michigan opened up with odds of +2,500 to win it all and was at +1,600 when the regular season began last month. The amount of money bet on Michigan during the last week has made the team the biggest liability in BetMGM’s futures market. The Wolverines’ 13% of the handle is the highest of any team listed.
Michigan is seeking its first national championship in men’s basketball since 1989. The Wolverines last made the Final Four in 2018. They’re +140 favorites at BetMGM to win the Big Ten title this season.
Other contenders
Purdue was the favorite heading into last week at +800 and has the second-highest handle percentage at BetMGM. The Boilermakers have dipped to +900, still shorter than their +1,400 opening odds.
Duke and Houston follow with both getting +1,100 in the NCAA Tournament winner market and around 8% of the money. The Blue Devils are third in tickets at 8.8%, behind Purdue (9.9%) and Michigan (9.8%).
Arizona is another big mover, going from +4,000 to +1,300, the sixth-shortest odds and behind fifth-place Gonzaga (+1,200). The Wildcats are BetMGM’s third-biggest liability behind Michigan and San Diego State (+15,000).
