Astros, Thunder Lead Monday’s Most Popular Public Sides
Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Outside of the Masters, baseball tends to dominate the early April betting scene. Today's most popular play, however, comes by way of the NBA.
Identified with our bet and dollar percentage data, here are the three plays that have attracted the most public action on Monday.
Cincinnati Reds-Philadelphia Phillies Over 9
7:10 p.m. ET
Seventy-five percent of over/under bettors are taking the over in this red-hat battle, making it one of the most popular plays of any kind on today's baseball board. With 82% of dollars also on the over, the total has moved up a half point from its opening number of 8.5.
Why the public loves the over: Public bettors are always looking to take an over, but this one in particular owes its popularity to the starting pitchers. Cody Reed and Ben Lively are both lacking in the experience department, with career records of 1-8 and 4-8, respectively.
Oklahoma City Thunder (-4) at Miami Heat
7:30 p.m. ET
This is both the most heavily bet and most lopsided game in the NBA today, making the Thunder today's most popular pick across all sports. After opening as a pick'em yesterday at Bookmaker, it took only 20 minutes for OKC to be listed as a 2.5-point favorite. Since then, the line has continued to steadily move toward the Thunder, who are now listed at -4 behind 82% of bets.
Why the public loves OKC: The Thunder have been a public favorite all season because of the talent packed into their starting five, but, since bettors often make decisions based on the last thing they see, today's public support is probably due in large part to their impressive win in Houston on Saturday.
Despite their betting popularity, they've actually been one of the worst teams to bet on this season, at 33-46-1 against the spread.
Houston Astros (-165) at Minnesota Twins
8:10 p.m. ET
With Justin Verlander going for his second win of the season, the Astros are the most popular team in baseball tonight. Seventy-four percent of the bets and 71% of dollars are on Houston.
Why the public loves Houston: The World Series champs have yet to receive fewer than 64% of bets in a game this season regardless of who's on the bump, so it should come as no surprise to see bettors attacking a Verlander start, even at -165.
Photo: Russell Westbrook
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