March 14, 2006

Oral Roberts University's odds : of winning the NCAA men's hoops tourney are five sextillion to one. So they have that going for them. Which is nice.

posted by mr_crash_davis to basketball at 11:27 AM - 16 comments

I'd bet a dollar or two.

posted by corpse at 11:38 AM on March 14, 2006

so your saying there's a chance.

posted by tron7 at 12:06 PM on March 14, 2006

dentists can't play basketball

posted by sirvomitousIV at 12:07 PM on March 14, 2006

I was poking around for actual betting lines (unless you think some bookie would take these odds), and while I didn't find any place that had ORU or Albany even on the board, I did find this quick analysis, which places the odds of any 16 seed winning even that first game against the 1 seed at 63-1. Which sounds about right.

posted by chicobangs at 12:12 PM on March 14, 2006

Wow his calculations seem pretty accurate don't they. Based on the other predictions the 16 over 1 seed win should have happened. I just hope to God when it happens it is Duke that gets upset.

posted by scottypup at 12:21 PM on March 14, 2006

If you bet, then send money to Oral Roberts. God will look after you. Well, this guy in Vegas told me...

posted by owlhouse at 02:01 PM on March 14, 2006

In the Washington Post today, they had the records of the brackets over the past 21 years. The record of the #1 seed against the #16 seed is 84-0 or the opposite 0-84. So that means that a #16 seed has never won against a #1 team in the last 21 years.

posted by usroute17 at 04:22 PM on March 14, 2006

That is correct. Until 1991 a #15 had never beat a #2 either but that streak got broken. Richmond beat Syracuse. It is a matter of time and it will eventually happen.

posted by scottypup at 04:58 PM on March 14, 2006

You know what, one of these days a #16 will beat a #1 seed...and then Hollywood is going to write a screen play about it and turn it into what could possibly be an interesting movie Here's to hoping that the first 16 to beat a 1 comes from the "play in game"

posted by chemwizBsquared at 05:10 PM on March 14, 2006

Three blocks from 71st and Lewis in Tulsa, OK you won't find anyone who cares and I'm 200 more miles away, so that should be an indicator on how important it is to me. But, gimme some points and I'll flop down my pocket change on them.

posted by Bud Lang at 05:13 PM on March 14, 2006

I think that the true drama of these 2006 March Madness (copyright NCAA) tournament games will be the Monmouth v Hampton play-in game. The sporting fellow would inquire the over under on Hampton. And give me Oral (Roberts) to be the first 16 to crush a 1.

posted by THX-1138 at 05:22 PM on March 14, 2006

Were these guys always the Golden Eagles? I was hoping for a more evangelical name.

posted by usfbull at 06:23 PM on March 14, 2006

Now let's just say you were to make the wager of $1, if you could find someone to take it, at the odds that Danny Sheridan has. If the most improbabale thing in the world were to happen and ORU could win six in a row, who would be able to pay you? Would they just hand you the keys to the planet? Bill Gates, he couldn't pay you. Not a good bet to make when you get down to it. Very unlikely to happen, but even if it did you couldn't get paid.

posted by chuck'n'duck at 06:53 PM on March 14, 2006

March Madness = Booooooooring - until the Sweet 16

posted by joromu at 08:41 PM on March 14, 2006

Now let's just say you were to make the wager of $1, If you had an even money (i.e. 50:50) chance in each game, then the probability of winning six in a row would be 1 in 2 to the power of 6, or 1 in 64. If a bookie offers you less than this, you're a mug.

posted by owlhouse at 09:19 PM on March 14, 2006

I once hit a free throw at the halftime of an ORU vs. Rice game to win two free footlong subs. My half-court shot for a $50 gift certificate to a restaurant long since forgotten rimmed out. Were these guys always the Golden Eagles? I was hoping for a more evangelical name. Actually, no. They used to be the Titans. They changed it sometime in the late 80's or early 90's. I really can't recall the reasoning behing it though. The best news about ORU making the tourney is that the University of Tulsa will now have a new coach to snag, a la Bill Self. Off-topic: Oral Roberts' son Richard is a prick. He used to come into the pizza joint where I worked in High School.

posted by Ufez Jones at 09:20 AM on March 15, 2006

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