Click here to subscribe today or Login.
I played quite the April Fools joke on you all this weekend. See, I told you last week to take Florida Atlantic straight up in their Final Four clash with San Diego State.
Not only did they lose, but they would have covered if I took the points. Additionally, they lost on a buzzer-beating midrange jumper.
What a funny joke I played, folks. I’m still laughing about it.
But seriously, a play I thought was a sure winner for about 39:55 on Saturday disintegrated right before my very eyes as Lamont Butler hit the biggest shot of his career (I assume) to send the Aztecs to Monday night’s national championship game.
It’s tough to balance. On one hand, losing bets stinks. On the other, is it really possible to be mad at a sports moment we’ll likely remember for a long, long time?
I saw something on Twitter yesterday after the game, a clip of some guy from Bleacher Report who had a big chunk of change riding on Florida Atlantic.
You see clips like that all the time, people who end up on the wrong end of bets, or their favorite team loses a heartbreaker, and people love to watch their misery. I do too, I’m guilty.
But someone else took that tweet and fired off a very stern reply scolding the other people in the room for cheering on the game-winning shot.
In this person’s estimation, they should have all been as sad as their friend was. I don’t buy that at all.
I mentioned in last week’s column, or maybe the previous one, how March Madness still feels like it transcends sports betting. There are so many classic moments, year after year, that it feels wrong to keep yourself from enjoying them because of a bet.
Now, first solution is to not bet as much money as this person had. Be responsible!
But ultimately, if you’re a sports fan, be a sports fan. Yeah you might lose a FAU ticket, but we all got to watch a mid-major program that’s been good for so long finally break down the door and put themselves on the game’s biggest stage.
I lost on FAU, and I wish I hadn’t. But I’ll remember Lamont Butler’s name long after I forget about my ticket.
Anyway, we’ve got the natty on Monday and a healthy baseball schedule on Monday, as well. Let’s dig in.
San Diego State (+7.5) vs. UConn — Monday, 9:20 p.m.
Pick: UConn -7.5
This is it. The last game of the season, pitting the two teams we all thought we would be here. Right?
No. 5 San Diego State, while not a true Cinderella, has certainly put the college basketball world on notice en route to their title game appearance, primarily with their sweltering defense.
UConn, a No. 4 seed, has looked like a top dog all the way through this field, winning all five games by double digits and covering each spread, including a 13-point win over Miami on Saturday.
It’s been bad practice to bet against the Huskies this March. Heck, it’s been bad practice to bet against the Huskies all season.
And so, I will hop on board the UConn train. (For what it’s worth, I had the Huskies bouncing in the first round against Iona in my bracket. I’m putting it out there because I believe in accountability.)
We saw a little bit of bend in the Aztec defense against Florida Atlantic. The Aztecs regrouped down the stretch, but needed to overcome a deficit that was as many as 14 points.
The Owls made nine three-pointers and were the first team to crack 70 points against San Diego State.
I think UConn is perfectly built to exploit any lingering cracks in the Aztec defense. They’re the most well-rounded team in the country, with lethal shooters in Jordan Hawkins and Alex Karaban and a dominant big man in Adama Sanogo.
When you factor in UConn’s backup big Donovan Clingan, who is also a monster, the Huskies have the balance and the depth to match up with San Diego State.
I fear this one may be a rout.
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Kansas City Royals — Monday, 7:40 p.m.
Pick: Blue Jays -1.5 (+130)
I wouldn’t be surprised if the juice on the Blue Jays run line isn’t as good closer to gametime tomorrow, so try and find it early if you can.
Toronto has not had a great start, dropping two of three to the Cardinals to start the year. But the Cardinals are very good, and I think the Blue Jays will be able to flip the script against the much softer Royals.
The Blue Jays send Jose Berrios to the mound for his first start of the year. Berrios, highly touted after coming over from Minnesota in a trade, was pretty mediocre last season.
But he’s still got really effective stuff and I am very high on him having a bounce-back type of year, and there aren’t a lot of teams that Berrios would probably rather get his year started against.
The Royals got swept against the Twins, their lineup was shutout in the first two of those games, and I don’t see a lot of upside for this ballclub this year.
Ironically, one Royal that I think may have himself a nice year is taking the mound on Monday, Brady Singer. Singer won 10 games last year and had a 3.23 ERA in 24 starts.
But I don’t know if he’ll be strong right out of the gate this year without many innings logged in the spring, and I think the Blue Jays offense has a whole lot of pop waiting for him.