A big Saturday college basketball slate — featuring a mix of regular-season finales and conference tournament matchups — has given bettors plenty from which to choose, and among those bettors have been sharps.
Specifically, the pros have targeted a couple of those regular-season finales from power conferences, finding value on both the Kansas vs. Texas Tech and Penn State vs. Northwestern spread.
Let's take a look.
Odds as of Saturday at 11 a.m. ET and via DraftKings. Get up to a $1,000 sign-up bonus at DraftKings today or see more offers and reviews for the best online sportsbooks.
Kansas vs. Texas Tech
2 p.m. ET
Laying 3-4 points with the No. 1 team in the country is essentially the perfect recipe for a public bet, and that's what's happening this afternoon in Lubbock.
The Jayhawks opened as 3.5-point favorites at most books — and even -4 at some — and have drawn 66% of bets to this point in what will be one of the most heavily-bet games of the day. But even with that backing, they've fallen to -3 across the entire market thanks to sharps.
The 66% of bettors on the favorite have generated just 55% of actual money, meaning bigger bets — the ones more likely to come from pros — are going the other way.
Confirming that, a Sports Insights Bet Signal — a real-time tracker of sharp action based on market movement — has hit Texas Tech at +3.5, getting oddsmakers to bring this number down from its opener.
Sharp angle: Texas Tech (moved from +3.5 to +3) [Bet now at DraftKings. NJ, PA, IN and WV only.]
Penn State vs. Northwestern
6 p.m. ET
An even more significant bet-vs.-money discrepancy has developed in this Big Ten matchup, as Northwestern has drawn just 16% of bettors, but has accounted for 45% of actual money.
As the 20th-ranked team in the country, Penn State's 7-point edge over the Wildcats, who are just 2-17 in Big Ten play, has made for an easy decision for most bettors. That 7-point edge, however, didn't always exist.
The Nittany Lions actually opened at -7.5, and even with their heavy backing — they could wind up being the most popular bet on the slate — oddsmakers have been convinced to lower the spread, thanks once again to sharp bettors.
Another SI Bet Signal at +7.5 has confirmed the pro action on the home underdog.
Sharp angle: Penn State (moved from +7.5 to +7) [Bet now at DraftKings. NJ, PA, IN and WV only.]
