North Carolina Avoids Another Tom Izzo Upset to Reach Sweet 16

Tom Izzo couldn’t do it again.

The legendary head coach entered the game with the most wins against a higher seed in NCAA Tournament history with 15. The 9-seed Michigan State Spartans held their own for most of the game, but the top-seeded UNC Tarheels proved too powerful, pulling away late for an 85-69 win.

Michigan State trailed by just five points with 8:10 remaining. However, UNC dominated the rest of the way. They went on a 12-2 run over the next five minutes as they outscored Michigan State 23-12 to close out the game.

The Tar Heels are now a perfect 6-0 against the Spartans in the NCAA Tournament. Their win also prevented Izzo from extending his NCAA record of 15 career Sweet Sixteen appearances.

UNC closed as a 4-point favorite and had the public on its side with 54% of all bets. The public loved them to win straight up even more, pounding the moneyline with 78% off the tickets and money despite significant juice (-182).

The Tar Heels entered the tournament with the seventh-best odds (+1800) to cut down the net in Arizona. However, the odds actually grew to +2000 once the matchup against Michigan State was set.

The Tar Heels now await the winner of Sunday’s game between 4-seed Alabama and 13-seed Grand Canyon.

Ready to get in on betting the NCAA Tournament  in North Carolina? You can now sign up for NC sports betting, as the state went live with legal betting on March 11.