- Basketball Point Spread Explained Definition
- Basketball Point Spread Explained Meaning
- Basketball Spreads Explained
- College Basketball Point Spread Picks
- Basketball Point Spread Explained Bleacher Report
Free NBA Picks + Predictions, Betting Tips and Parlays for Today. NBA POINT SPREADS EXPLAINED: The point spread – commonly referred to as. With point spread, the odds are usually set to -110 unless specified by the sportsbook. That means a $10 wager on the Hornets would give you $9.10 if they won. Our sports odds guide offers more info on point spread, fractional odds, and more if you want to boost your knowledge on sports betting. Examples seen on the College Basketball Vegas Odds pages could include -15 and -20. The added or extra ‘juice’ on a point-spread is determined by the sportsbook or operator. Many bettors shy away from books that lay on the juice because it takes away from your winnings. Bet $100 to $83.33 ($20% juice) Ex. Bet $100 to win $86.95 (15% juice). Team A 'covers' the point spread (wins by that amount or more). The total score is higher than the book's prediction. (Such parlays usually pay off at odds of 13:5 with no commission charge, just as a standard two-team parlay would.) Mathematics. The mathematical analysis of spreads and spread betting is a large and growing subject. The standard odds payout for a point spread bet is -110. This means that either side that you wager on will be paid out at -110 for a correct pick. This means that for every $100 you wager, you will profit $90.91. Point Spread Betting Strategy. Sports betting is not just about being able to pick out the winner and loser of a game.
Of the four major sports, basketball is one of the easiest to bet on. Along with football, basketball uses the point spread for wagering on sides (teams), as well as an over/under number. If you know how to bet on football, you already pretty much know how to bet on basketball. However, to help out beginners we will have the most important basketball odds explained.
The most common method of betting basketball involves the point spread. This is a handicap the sportsbooks impose on one team to make both teams equal in terms of betting. With the point spread, the team expected to win will be called the favorite. However, the team expected to lose will be called the underdog. The team expected to win gives or lays, points to the team expected to lose for betting purposes.
Totals Betting
The second most popular method of wagering on basketball is in betting totals, also known as over/unders. Essentially, a total is the predicted combined score of the two teams playing. A number will be posted, and bettors have the option of wagering more than the predicted total points will be scored (over), or less than the predicted total points will be scored (under).
In our hypothetical game between the Knicks and the Celtics, the over/under number might be 188. Bettors wagering on the over would win their bets if the total combined score were 189 or greater, while bettors wagering on the under would win their bets if the combined total score were 187 or fewer points. Again, if the combined score is exactly 188 points, the bet is considered a push, or a tie, and no money changes hands.
NBA Over/Under Betting
Bookies always set a number that represents how many points the teams will combine to score in the game, called the Over/Under, or O/U. You simply pick whether the final score will be greater than (over) or less than (under) the number the odds-makers set. You can’t talk about basketball odds explained without totals betting. Here is an example:
Atlanta Hawks vs. Miami Heat – OVER/UNDER 190.5
Remember that over/under bets will also always have some kind of vigorish (usually -110), so be sure to take that into account when placing this type of wager.
To determine what the scoreboard will look like after 4 quarters, take a look at schedules and injury reports for each side. If a team is in midst of a long road trip or suffering from injuries, they are more likely to have a slow-paced, half-court offense worked into their game plan. But if they’re coming in with fresh legs and/or playing at home, you can expect a lot more running than usual. It’s never a sure-fire prediction, but it’ll help get you above 50% accuracy.
Another scenario that leads to more fast-break basketball is when a coach is trying to play his team into shape in the earliest stretch of the preseason or regular season. However, that tends to happen more often in prep and NCAA basketball than in pro action.
Also, be sure to investigate both squads’ tendencies in “garbage” time. When a contest is a blow-out, pro coaches like to substitute their bench onto the floor. Depending on what type of youngsters are playing out the minutes and who is coaching them, there could be a lot of running – or a more low-scoring half-court game.
Moneyline Betting
While betting against the point spread or on totals make up the vast majority of basketball wagers, bettors also have several other betting options available to them. One is the moneyline wager, which is a bet on the winner of the game without the point spread. But because some teams are given a better than 50-percent chance of winning, moneyline wagers are made using odds, so that if you bet on the team expected to win you will be asked to risk considerably more than you stand to win.
The moneyline odds on a game will look something like:
- Boston Celtics -300
- New York Knicks +240
What this means is that bettors taking the Celtics are asked to put up $30 to win $10, while those believing the Knicks will win are asked to risk $10 to win $24.
All sports betting was done with moneylines at one point, but with too many people betting on the obvious favorites all of the time, the point spread was introduced, and sports betting hasn’t been the same since.
Basketball Odds Explained: Betting on the Spread
If the Celtics are playing the Knicks, most bettors would bet on the Celtics to win the game. But say the point spread will make the Celtics a 10-point favorite. What this means is that the Celtics have to win by 11 or more points for its bettors to win their bet, while those betting on the Knicks would win their wagers if the Knicks won the game or lost by nine points or less. If the Celtics win by exactly 10 points, the bet is a push or a tie, and no money changes hands.
When betting against the point spread, bettors are asked to lay 11-to-10 odds, which means that they risk $11 to win $10. This is how the bookies and sportsbooks make their money. If I bet $11 on the Celtics and you bet $11 on the Knicks, the bookie collects $22 between us, but only returns $21 to the winner. The extra dollar is essentially the bookie’s fee for accepting our wagers. Spread betting is otherwise known as handicap betting. You can check our basketball handicap section to learn more about that. Additionally, check the Coinbet24 blog to learn more about Handicap Betting.
Betting the NBA Against the Spread
Let’s start off with an example of a pro hoops game with the point spread listed:
Chicago Bulls +6 (-110)
LA Lakers -6 (-110)
LA Lakers -6 (-110)
In these lines, Los Angeles is a 6-point favorite over the Chicago Bulls. Remember, the team with the minus (-) sign is the favorite. The number listed after is how many points they are favored by. That means you could bet on L.A. to best their opponent. However, they must prevail in the contest by more than 6 points for your wager to pay off.
If the Lakers prevail by less than 6 points, your bet would be a loser. If Los Angeles prevails by exactly 6 points, your wager would be a “push” or tie, meaning your wager would be nullified.
On the other side of the ledger is Chicago at +6. This means the Bulls are “getting” 6 points (or are 6-point underdogs). A wager on Chicago would score for you if the Bulls either prevail outright, or lose by less than 6 points (e.g. Bulls 101, Lakers 105 would give you a winning bet if you took the Bulls +6).
The next number, after the point spread, represents the “vigorish,” or juice, that the book requires to place your bet. In the example above, both numbers are -110 (which is fairly typical). This means you must wager $110 to win $100 (or $55 to win $50, etc.). However, this number does change on occasion, so be sure you check it before placing a wager.
Basketball Odds Explained: Bitcoin Betting
When betting on basketball, it’s important to look for the best markets and odds on the most popular leagues. This includes the NBA, NCAAB, EuroLeague, and international tournaments like the World Cup or the EuroCup. This is why we suggest visiting Coinbet24, an online sports betting and casino operator. We hope that our basketball odds explained article shares enough information on the matter.
Conversely, the best place to place basketball bets is on a bitcoin sportsbook like Coinbet24. The bitcoin sportsbook offers odds and markets from the most popular basketball leagues in the world. You will find markets from the NBA, NCAAB, Euroleague, Eurocup, FIBA Europe Cup, etc. Additionally, there are markets from almost every national basketball league in the world.
The Coinbet24 bitcoin sportsbook offers a broad selection of betting types when it comes to basketball. You will find all standard bet types like moneyline (including OT) bets, several different totals score bets, handicap bets (including OT), etc. There is a wide selection of special bitcoin basketball betting offers as well.
If you place wagers on US sports, then chances are high that you’ve heard of point spreads. Here’s how they work; if a game has Patriots -9.0 and Vikings +9.0, the Patriots are 9.0 point favorites and the Vikings are 9.0 point underdogs. Unless otherwise stated, no matter which team you bet on, you’ll be required to risk $1.10 for each $1.00 you want to win. For Patriots bettors to prevail, they need their team to win by 10 or more points. A 9-point Patriot victory would be a push (a tie). For Vikings bettors to take home the victory, they need to either win the game or lose by less than 9 points.
Point spreads are used since most recreational bettors prefer to wager even money propositions. In the above example, if there was no point spread, only moneyline betting would exist. So, if odds makers are giving the New England Patriots a 73% chance of winning a game, then in order to take bets and still have a small profit margin, the bookmaker would have no choice but to require Patriot bettors to stake $3.00 or more for each $1.00 they want to win.
With a point spread, the odds are balanced, so you usually have to risk just $1.10 to win $1.00. This makes the point spreads appealing to recreational bettors, who often think it’s easy to make money from them. We have to be honest with you; it’s NOT easy, but it IS possible. The strategy we cover in this article should help!
Recommended ReadingWe’ve provided a brief explanation of point spreads in our introduction here, but if you’d like to know more about this type of wager then please read our beginner’s guide to betting point spreads.
Simple Tips for Point Spread Betting
Strategy for betting point spreads is obviously different for each sport and league, but these four tips are general enough to apply to them all.
- Take Advantage of Bonus Offers
- Use Multiple Betting Sites
- Be Careful of Road Favorites
- Understand Key Numbers
Let’s go over each of these tips in a little more detail.
Take Advantage of Bonus Offers
One way to make money from sports betting is to open an account at an online betting site and take advantage of their sign up bonus. This gives you extra money to wager with, and since point spreads are so straightforward, it can be relatively easy to meet the associated wagering requirements and still come out ahead. Repeating this process at multiple betting sites will maximize your potential returns! We just ask that you please stick with reputable sites, like any of the ones that we recommend.
Use Multiple Betting Sites
We already mentioned how using multiple betting sites allows you to take advantage of multiple bonus offers. That’s not the only benefit either. Since point spreads vary between sites, one of the best ways to beat these wagers is to compare the different spreads in order to find which one is the most favorable. This doesn’t take nearly as long as you might think, and it will make a huge difference to your bottom line over time.
Let’s take a hypothetical game between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots as an example. One site might have the spread as follows.
Point Spread
+7
-7
Another site might offer a slightly different spread.
Point Spread
+7.5
-7.5
Basketball Point Spread Explained Definition
If you’re betting in favor of the Patriots, then you should be betting with Bookmaker A. If the Patriots win by more than seven points, then you’ll win with either bookmaker. However, if they win by exactly seven points, you’ll lose with Bookmaker B. With Bookmaker A, you’ll push and get your stake returned.
On the other hand, if you’re betting on the Bills, then Bookmaker B will be your best option. A Bills loss of exactly seven points would be a push at Bookmaker A, but it would be a win for you at Bookmaker B.
It’s only a half-point difference, and that might not seem like a lot. The bookmakers tend to be very accurate with their spreads though, and an extra half-point in your favor can easily add up to extra profits over time.
Be Careful of Road Favorites
Many novice bettors fail to understand the impact of home advantage when wagering on sport events. When looking at the board for potential wagers, these bettors tend to get excited and bet on lots of superior teams favored on the road against weaker opponents. The betting market is so much more advanced than this, and for the most part point spreads are always going to be 50/50 propositions.
Please NoteWe’re not saying that you should never bet on road favorites. Just make sure that you have good reasons to do so. Keep in mind; they don’t just need to win, they need to win by a greater margin than the spread suggests they will.
Understand Key Numbers
While understanding key numbers is beneficial for betting point spreads on any sport, key numbers are known for having the most significance in football. In NFL football, most games are decided by three or seven points. Therefore, when shopping the odds, the difference between -7.0 and -6.5 is far greater than the difference between -5.5 and -5.0.
App to stop gambling. With some betting sites odds, certain games are priced differently than risking $1.10 to win $1.00 (which is called -110 odds). For example, you might see the Giants priced at -105 and +7 in a game against the Jets. Now, you only have to risk $1.05 to win $1.00. This is obviously better odds, but it’s very likely that they will lose by exactly seven to give you a push. Taking -110 and +7.5 with an alternative bookmaker is actually the better bet.
Getting your head around these kind of intricacies, as well as knowing the relevant key numbers, is vital if you want to bet on the point spreads successfully.
Now that we’ve got the basic tips covered, we want to provide you with some point spread betting tips specific to two of the most popular US sports: football and basketball.
Point Spread Betting in Football
One of the best ways to beat football point spread betting is to use teasers. A teaser is a form of a parlay bet using modified point spreads. Each point spread you select is moved 6 points in your favor. For example, let’s say you’re interested in betting on the following.
-7
-3.5
+7
A teaser would give you a single wager with the following spreads.
+1
+3.5
+13
Each selection is obviously easier to get right with the spread moved in your favor, but you do have to get all three correct in order for your wager to win.
Recommended ReadingIf you want to learn how to beat this form of wagering, you’ll definitely want to read our article on betting football teasers.
Basketball Point Spread Explained Meaning
Another way to beat football point spreads is to shop for off market prices. For example, let’s say you’re shopping online betting sites and see every site is offering Vikings +7.0. Then, you stumble upon one site that’s offering +7.5. There’s a good chance that this is a +EV wager, simply because it is out of sync with every other site. Please note that this strategy isn’t quite the same as simply shopping for the best lines. Here, you’re specifically looking for wagers that are +EV because they’re against the market.
It’s also important to consider whether or not there’s any correlation between the point spread and the betting total. If they are, a parlay wager is a good way to get maximum value. For example, a college football point spread +24.5 parlayed with under 48 points in the same game might be a great parlay bet. If the +24.5 team covers the point spread, then there’s an increased chance that the game also goes under the posted total of 48.
Finally, you might want to think about learning the correct strategies for buying half-points in football. While many people are against this method, we’re here to tell you that there are some circumstances where buying points can be profitable.
Point Spread Betting in Basketball
Buying half points is a strategy that can work for basketball too. Most online betting sites offer bettors the ability to purchase half-points at 10 cents each. Let’s say the Lakers are -6.5 at odds of -110 for example. Here of some of the options you can expect to see.
Basketball Spreads Explained
-120
-130
-140
A great strategy for betting basketball point spreads is to shop dozens of betting sites for the best line, and then purchase as many half points as possible (provided they are priced 10 cents each).
When using this strategy, it’s helpful to know the most common margins of victory in NBA basketball and how often they occur.
This information shows us that nearly half the games finish with one of the eight point margins listed, and this isn’t the result of variance. Some margins of victory occur more frequently than others because of end game strategy. The winning team is often found running the clock, while the losing team if often found intentionally fouling.
The key here is to target the point spread five and seven, because these are virtually tied as the most common margins of victory. It’s important to recognize that most betting sites are only willing to sell 2 or 3 half points for 10 cents each, after which point they start charging more. Some sites sell up to four half points at this price though.
College Basketball Point Spread Picks
![Point Point](/uploads/1/3/4/8/134869309/938720888.png)
To show how this can be exploited, take a point spread of -8.5 at odds of -110. This is a 50/50 proposition. Let’s assume you’ve purchased enough points to move the spread to -6.5 at odds of -150. Now, you’d win instead of lose 6.24% of the time they win by 8, and 6.59% of the time they win by 7. Add these together with the 50% from the original proposition, and we get 62.83%.
Basketball Point Spread Explained Bleacher Report
Go to our odds converter, and you’ll see that the implied probability of -150 is 60%. This means you need to win 60% of the time to break even. However, our handicapping shows the actual probability of winning is 62.38%.
If we risked $150 to win $100 on this -150 line, 62.38% of the time we would win $100. And 37.62% of the time we would lose $150. This gives us an expected profit of $5.95 for every $150 risked.
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If you only make large +EV bets such as the basketball example above, betting sites will limit the amount you’re allowed to wager. It’s not uncommon for online bookmakers to spot a skilled bettor and say, “Okay you can keep wagering here, but the maximum you’re allowed to bet per game is $500.00.”
If you keep betting and winning, they might decrease your limits even further. That’s why we recommend trying to hide the fact that you’re so sharp. By placing some random wagers and occasionally spending some time at their casino, you’ll have a much better chance of staying under the radar.
This is also another good reason for using multiple sites. Since there are so many different reputable betting sites to choose from, it would take you a long time to get limited at every single one of them.
If you keep betting and winning, they might decrease your limits even further. That’s why we recommend trying to hide the fact that you’re so sharp. By placing some random wagers and occasionally spending some time at their casino, you’ll have a much better chance of staying under the radar.
This is also another good reason for using multiple sites. Since there are so many different reputable betting sites to choose from, it would take you a long time to get limited at every single one of them.