The Michigan Wolverines were dominant in animpressive 91-73 victory over the Arizona Wildcatson Saturday night in the Final Four in Indianapolis.
Michigan closed as a 1.5-point underdog atBetMGM(pick 'em or -1 at some other books) against Arizona — the first time the Wolverines had been an underdog since they were 2.5-point 'dogs on Nov. 26 against Gonzaga. Michigan won that game 101-61.
The Wolverines will take on Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies on Monday night, and Michigan opened as a 7.5-point favorite at BetMGM with a total of 145.5.
UConn (+1.5) led for most of the game against No. 3 Illinois in the first Final Four game on Saturday and ended up winning 71-62 — the 18th win (and cover) in the Huskies' last 19 NCAA tournament games.
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The Huskies have won all six national championship games they've appeared in (1999, 2004, 2011, 2014, 2023, 2024) and covered the spread in every game. This will be the third time UConn has been an underdog in the title game.
Sportsbooks would prefer a Michigan victory on Monday night in the futures pool, as many books shortened the Wolverines' odds significantly after their showing in Las Vegas in November so significant liability didn't build up.
There is certainly one bettor hoping for a Huskies victory, as a bettor at DraftKingswould win $1 millionif Hurley & Co. win their third championship in four seasons. That bettor wagered $77,000 on UConn at 13-1 odds to win the national championship, a wager that would win $1,001,000.
The national championship game is at 8:50 p.m. ET on Monday on HBO and TBS.