College hoops bettors are backing Caitlin Clark and Iowa vs. UConn with so much money
Public bettors are backing Caitlin Clark to have a big game and Iowa to advance to the final.
After a record 12.3 million viewers watched Caitlin Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes team beat LSU 94-87 (and cover the 2.5-point spread) in a game that was the most-bet women’s college basketball game ever at several sportsbooks, it’s not shocking that the betting public is backing No. 1 Iowa again on Friday against No. 3 UConn.
Iowa is a 2.5- or 3-point favorite at sportsbooks.
“This is the game of the weekend, with college basketball’s biggest star, Caitlin Clark, going up against one of the best players in the country in Paige Bueckers,” a FanDuel trader said in an email. “UConn’s history and pedigree looms large in this matchup, but we’ve never seen a player like Clark before. It’s no surprise most bets are coming in on Clark and her overs, as well as the betting leaning heavily toward Iowa. The Hawkeyes have taken 52 percent of bets on the moneyline and 81% of spread bets.”
Betting public is all over Caitlin Clark and Iowa to cover tonight vs. UConn in #NCAAWBB Final Four:
84% of bets, 88% of $$ at @betmgm
84% of bets, 71% of at @FanaticsBook
81% of bets, 84% of at @FDSportsbook
74% of bets, 88% of at @DKSportsbook
Iowa (-150) has…
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) April 5, 2024
At DraftKings Sportsbook, Iowa -3 was the most-bet side of the women’s Final Four games, and 74 percent of bets, along with a whopping 88 percent of money wagered was on the Hawkeyes to cover. At BetMGM, 84 percent of bets and 88 percent of the handle was on Iowa to cover.
At Fanatics Sportsbook, there had been 5x as much money wagered on the Iowa moneyline (-150) as the UConn moneyline (+130), as of Friday morning.
Bettors were also backing Clark’s individual player props to go over in droves, as 93 percent of bets and 96 percent of the money at DraftKings was on Clark to go over 5.5 3-pointers made.