Columnist Jeff Haney: Duke opens as big favorite to retain title

Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2001 | 9:42 a.m.

Jeff Haney's sports betting column appears Wednesday. Reach him at 259-4041 or haney@lasvegassun.com.

Hailed by one oddsmaker as a "mini NBA team," powerhouse Duke has been installed as a heavy favorite to repeat as college basketball's national champion.

The Blue Devils opened at 9-5 to win the 2001-02 men's basketball title, according to betting lines created by oddsmakers at the Imperial Palace and the soon-to-open Palms hotel-casino.

The three Las Vegas oddsmakers who came up with the numbers -- Adam Pullen and Jeff Sherman of the Palms, and Ed Salmons of the IP -- made lines on a whopping 99 college teams as well as a field (all others) bet.

There was never any question, though, that Duke would end up at the head of this season's class.

"Last year, they were favored every game, and a prohibitive favorite in most of their games," Sherman said. "About all they lost was (consensus player of the year) Shane Battier, so they're going to be loaded again -- they're like a mini NBA team."

Duke, which finished 35-4 straight-up a year ago and beat Arizona in the national title game, has another strong player of the year candidate in guard Jason Williams and a healthy Carlos Boozer, who missed part of last season due to a broken foot.

The Blue Devils figure to be big favorites in most of their games again this season -- a situation that forces linemakers to attach such low odds to their title chances, Sherman said.

"We're going to see the same type of point spreads (in Duke's games), maybe even larger ones," Sherman said. "You can't put them up at 4-1 or 5-1; you'd just be setting yourself up for too much liability."

Downtown's El Cortez hotel-casino, which also posted early lines on the NCAA championship, opened Duke at 3-1. El Cortez has odds up on only 39 teams plus a field bet.

Sherman & Co. set out to go the extra mile with their lengthy list of college teams.

"We tried to make it as comprehensive as we could," Sherman said. "We thought that with 99 teams, we'd draw action from people from out of town as well as locals. People who visit can go back and say, 'I was out there and I bet it here; no one else had them up.' "

Just behind Duke (9-5) at the IP and Palms are Maryland and Illinois (7-1), followed by Kentucky and UCLA (12-1), Kansas (15-1) and Florida (20-1).

Among teams of local or regional interest, UNLV is listed at 200-1, BYU at 500-1 and Utah State at 1,000-1. The Mountain West Conference's top team is Utah at 50-1. Nevada-Reno did not make the cut on the IP/Palms list, but is 500-1 at El Cortez.

"Michael Jordan is the champion of champions," said Chuck Esposito, assistant vice president of Caesars Palace race and sports book operations. "His return significantly increases interest in the NBA. People are excited to see him back in action, and everyone is curious to see how dramatically his return affects the league."

Among the Jordan props at Caesars are:

Odds are subject to change, and are subject to games-played requirements.

In this week's matchup, columnist Stephen Nover of Gaming Today and The Prescription website faces football Hall of Famer Tom Mack. The action gets under way at 9 p.m. Friday in the Stardust race and sports book.

The Stardust invitational features 16 contestants competing in a single-elimination tournament for a $10,000 prize.