Duke Wins Title but Butler Covers the Online Wager. An online wager on Butler in the NCAA Championship game was a winner as the Bulldogs covered the spread against Duke even though they did not win the game. The title game was back and forth and the online wagering outcome was a good one for the sportsbooks.
Online wager odds listed Duke as about a 7.5 point favorite against Butler in the title game. Duke never threatened to cover the point spread with the biggest lead in the game being six points. Whenever a favorite wins the game but doesn’t cover the spread it is usually a good outcome for the sportsbooks.
The NCAA title game was not always pretty but it was definitely close, intense and exciting for those making an online wager. Duke won 61-59 but they had to survive two missed Butler shots in the last few seconds. Gordon Heyward missed a tough shot from the baseline with about four seconds left and he barely missed a three-point shot from halfcourt at the buzzer that would have won the game for Butler. “We just came up a bounce short,” Butler coach Brad Stevens said.
Duke was led by their big three of Kyle Singler, Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith. Coach Mike Krzyzewski won his first championship since 2001 and his fourth overall. “First of all, it was a great basketball game. I want to congratulate an amazing Butler team and their fans,” Krzyzewski said. “Fabulous year. We played a great game, they played a great game. It’s hard for me to say it, to imagine that we’re the national champions.”
Monday’s game was just the 11th championship game to be decided by two points or less. It was the closest margin of victory since 1989 when Michigan beat Seton Hall 80-79. “Both teams and all the kids on both teams played their hearts out,” Krzyzewski said. “There was never more than a couple, a few points separating, so a lot of kids made big plays for both teams.” Defense was the name of the game on Monday. Duke held Butler to 34 percent shooting. Butler allowed 60 points for the first time since February but just barely. Hayward and Shelvin Mack had 12 points each to lead Butler. The game ended up with 120 points being scored which was well under the online wagering total of 128.5.