For all the talk about a boring NCAA Tournament so far, Sunday's first game did its part to squash that.
Iowa — a 7.5-point underdog — trailed Tennessee by 21 points at halftime and 25 points in the second half, only to storm back and send the game to overtime at 71-71. But the Hawkeyes almost failed to cover in overtime, losing 83-77. Talk about a wild ride.
According to the win probability metrics in The Action Network app, Tennessee had a 95.25% chance to cover toward the end of the first half.
But Iowa topped that at 98.13% cover probability with 13 seconds left.
Had Iowa won the game, it would have been the biggest second-half comeback in NCAA Tournament history (25 points) — and it would've made at least one longshot Hawkeye bettor very happy.
The guys at @PointsBetUSA, which offers mobile gambling in NJ, took a bet from someone at the half for Iowa to win. It was a $150 bet. Will collect $15,000 if Hawkeyes win.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) March 24, 2019
But alas, Tennessee held on to the six-point victory, making spread bettors sweat until the very end.
Under bettors were also burned by overtime, as the closing total of 155.5 almost held on before free throws with less than 30 seconds left pushed it over.
