Stanley Cup Final and NBA Finals: I participated in two games from each series, both of which are interconnected.
In the NHL, The Panthers secured a victory in the Overtime Game on Friday night, tying the series with the Edmonton Oilers 1-1. Game 3 on Monday will take place in Florida. I worked overtime for both matchups.
In the NBA, The Oklahoma City Thunder made a strong comeback after losing Game 1 against the Indiana Pacers. The next game in this series is scheduled for Wednesday night in Indianapolis.
This Week’s Trends
After their Game 1 defeat to Indiana, Oklahoma City was favored by 11.5 points in Game 2, winning 123-107 comfortably.
At the BETMGM Sportsbook, the Dunder was backed by 70% of the money, but only 37% of the bets. Historically, since 2005, teams that have lost as double-digit favorites in the NBA playoffs tend to gain favor of over 10 points in the next game, currently standing at 5-2 against the spread.
Oklahoma City came out strong, finishing the first quarter 9-0 after 12 minutes, leading 26-20. This spread in the first quarter paid off with 4.5 points, with 91% of the funds going towards lightning.
Following Edmonton’s Game 1 victory over Florida, the Oilers were -235 favorites to win the Stanley Cup. With Florida’s Game 2 win, they have now edged slightly ahead at -115, compared to Edmonton’s -105.
This Week’s Upset
At the French Open, Coco Gauff (+185) triumphed over Alina Sabalenka to capture the women’s title. Gauff was only favored by 29% to win.
On the men’s side, Carlos Alcaraz came back from being down 2 sets against Jannik Sinner to secure his second consecutive French Open title. Alcaraz was at +5000 live odds while trailing in sets.
Ryan Fox clinched his second PGA Tour victory this season at the RBC Canadian Open. Fox defeated Sam Burns in the fourth playoff hole after both players finished the event at 18 under. He had +5500 odds to win before the tournament, capturing only 0.8% of the bets and 1.7% of the money.
What’s Coming Up
The NFL minicamp kicks off this week, with the Philadelphia Eagles currently leading the odds to win the Super Bowl at +650.
Following the Eagles are the Baltimore Ravens at +700, the Buffalo Bills at +750, and the Kansas City Chiefs at +800. The Detroit Lions complete the top five at +1000.
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This column was provided to the Associated Press by the BETMGM Online Sportsbook.
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AP Sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports
Source: apnews.com