Post Action Betting

Dez Bryant, public bettors burned by UNC’s stunning loss to Alabama in March Madness

By
Social Links for Dylan Svoboda
Published March 29, 2024, 1:15 p.m. ET
The North Carolina Tar Heels were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by the Alabama Crimson Tide on Thursday.
The North Carolina Tar Heels were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by the Alabama Crimson Tide on Thursday. NCAA Photos via Getty Images

If you lost money betting on North Carolina on Thursday night, you aren’t alone. 

As a 4.5-point favorite against No. 4 seed Alabama, the top-seeded Tar Heels were the most-bet team against the spread for Thursday’s four-game slate, garnering 83 percent of the tickets and 84 percent of the handle at BetMGM Sportsbook. 

And it wasn’t just BetMGM that reported intense interest in the Tar Heels. 

More than 80 percent of the money on the spread at FanDuel, DraftKings and Fanatics was on UNC as well. 

Even Dez Bryant, the former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver turned high-stakes sports gambler, bet on the Tar Heels, tossing them in a two-leg moneyline parlay with the Illinois Fighting Illini, who took down the Iowa State Cyclones, 72-69, to move on to the Elite Eight. 

But public support wasn’t enough to push UNC over the top. 

The underdog Crimson Tide were the victors, eliminating the Tar Heels with a thrilling 89-87 come-from-behind win. 

North Carolina led by as many as 10 points late in the first half and went into halftime with an eight-point lead before Alabama stormed back. 

Dez Bryant lost a parlay on UNC.
Dez Bryant lost a parlay on UNC. Ron Adar / M10s / SplashNews.com

Even before the tournament, North Carolina had been one of the most popular teams among sports bettors.

Hubert Davis’ club was the most-bet team, in terms of tickets, to make the Final Four and Elite 8 at BetMGM.

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They also had the third-most tickets to reach the Sweet 16 pre-tournament.

UNC was +1300 to win the tournament before the First Four, which was the fifth-best odds at BetMGM behind UConn (+400), Houston (+600), Purdue (+650) and Arizona (+1100).

They were +300 to make the Final 4 and +120 to make the Elite 8.