Alabama vs. Clemson: Sportsbook shares how Elite 8 game is being bet
By Andrew Olson
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Alabama is looking to make the Final Four for the first time in program history. The 4-seed Crimson Tide will face a 6-seed Clemson team that is turning heads in the NCAA Tournament with a parade of upsets after stumbling into the Big Dance.
The Tide and Tigers will play for the West Region title at 8:49 p.m. Saturday. It’s the second time the teams will face each other in the 2023-24 campaign. Clemson won 85-77 on Nov. 28 in Tuscaloosa as part of ACC/SEC Challenge.
Ahead of Saturday’s tipoff, BetMGM shared with Saturday Down South how the game is being bet.
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Alabama opened as a 3.5-point favorite for the game. The line has not moved as of Saturday morning. Both spread lines are priced at -110, meaning a $110 bet would win $100.
At BetMGM, bettors like the Tide to keep rolling. Alabama is receiving 63% of the spread bets for 71% of the handle (money in play).
- Alabama -3.5 (-110): 63% bets, 71% handle
- Clemson +3.5 (-110): 37% bets, 29% handle
Those who are betting on Clemson are waiving the points. The moneyline is showing some different splits.
Moneyline pricing has moved for both teams. On the opening line, Alabama was priced at -150, translating to a $150 bet being needed to win $100. UA moneyline moved to -165 by Saturday morning and to -175 at time of publishing.
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Clemson moneyline was initially priced at +130. The Tigers were +140 on Saturday morning and +145 at time of publishing.
The moneyline is producing much different splits from the spread. As of Saturday morning, Clemson had a majority of moneyline bets, but Alabama still has the majority of the handle, albeit with a much tighter split than the spread.
- Alabama to win (-165): 31% bets, 54% handle
- Clemson to win (+140): 69% bets, 46% handle
Will Clemson’s defense slow down Alabama’s offense?
Alabama’s high-powered offense leads to over/under betting lines that stand out from the rest of the pack.
Alabama-Clemson opened with an over/under of 164.5 at BetMGM. As of Saturday morning, the line has not moved.
Bettors think the total is a bit too high. The under is getting 68% of the bets for 65% of the handle so far. Both are priced at -110.
- Under 164.5 points (-110): 68% bets, 65% handle
- Over 164.5 points (-110): 32% bets, 35% handle
How they got here
To get to the Elite 8, Alabama flexed its scoring muscle to beat 13-seed Charles of Charleston 109-96, showed it can play defense to top 12-seed Grand Canyon 72-61 and did a little bit of everything to outlast 1-seed North Carolina 89-87.
A 6-seed, Clemson opened against 11-seed New Mexico, a “trendy” upset pick. The Tigers showed that losing 3-of-4 before the Big Dance was no big issue, downing New Mexico 76-55.
From there, Clemson showed it knows a thing or two about upsets. The Tigers defeated 3-seed Baylor 72-64 and 2-seed Arizona 77-72.
Saturday’s game is set for 8:49 p.m. ET on TBS.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
