Monday, March 22, 2004 | 10:47 a.m.
An executive with the NCAA who was a spectator in several Las Vegas sports books during the opening rounds of the NIT and NCAA basketball tournaments last week says his colleagues probably will be surprised to learn how many different ways there are to bet on a basketball game.
But Bill Saum, the NCAA's director of agent, gambling and amateurism activities, said what struck him most during his 2 1/2 days of observations of the sports books was how little people actually cared about who won the games -- as long as they were on the right side of the point spread or chose the "over" or "under" correctly.
"What I found interesting was that I didn't see people cheering wins and losses," Saum said in a telephone interview from Indianapolis after completing his trip. "I saw people who were cheering for points and baskets."
Saum said the unconventional viewing of a game was most noticeable in Texas Tech's 76-73 victory over Charlotte in the East Rutherford, N.J. NCAA Regional on Thursday. Charlotte scored a basket at the end of the game that was meaningless to the outcome of the game. But to bettors who had Texas Tech, giving four points in the point spread -- or Charlotte backers who had the 49ers plus four points -- the late basket meant the difference between winning and losing a wager.
"I use that specific game as an example because it was so obvious," Saum said. "But people were worried about halftime scores and the point spread (of several other games). There was chatter about overs and unders. But I didn't see much flat-out cheering for teams."
Saum said the problem with what he saw is that fans have become oblivious to the spirit of what collegiate athletics is supposed to be about -- straight-up competition and the integrity of sports.
Saum said there weren't any surprises for him at the sports books -- he's made several visits to Las Vegas over the years and has even met with representatives of the sports book industry on previous stops. He said he would report back to the NCAA membership about his observations so that the organization can keep watch on an industry it believes to be detrimental to collegiate athletics.
The NCAA has supported some unsuccessful attempts to ban wagering on collegiate and amateur athletics legislatively, encouraging big-name football and basketball coaches to testify on behalf of a bill to ban those bets championed by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. A McCain proposal to ban betting on collegiate sports died in committee in 2001.
But a bill introduced by Rep. Tom Osborne, R-Neb., a former football coach at the University of Nebraska, was one of the sports page sidebars of the NCAA basketball tournament coverage a year ago.
McCain reintroduced a Senate version of the Osborne bill in May, but both eventually lost steam, thanks in part to opposition from Nevada's congressional delegation.
McCain has said this year that he has other legislative priorities keeping him busy. Saum said he is unaware of any new push to revive McCain's bill.
Saum couldn't recall how many sports books he visited in his visit Wednesday through Friday.
"Goodness gracious, there was the Hard Rock, the Palms, Bally's, The Mirage, Stardust, Bellagio, Caesars (Palace)," he said. "I tried to go to as many of them as I could."
Saum figured to see a large number of college students spending their spring breaks in Las Vegas.
"This truly is one of the huge spring break destinations of the country," he said. "Sun, beer and basketball."
And the crowd was about what he expected with many young adults and college students. By confirming his expectations, Saum said he would be more effective in relating to coaches, athletic directors and athletes some of the pitfalls in becoming associated with gamblers. Saum said he would address players and coaches of the Final Four teams to warn them about the potential of influence on the games.
Some sports bettors like to associate with coaches and athletes because they believe they can get inside information that would give them an edge in their bets.
"We understood that this was a big weekend in the sports books because of the basketball tournament," Saum said. "I knew it was a busy week in town when I arrived at the airport. I had to wait for over an hour to get a cab."
Saum said the visit was an informal one and he didn't conduct any interviews or talk with any casino officials, although he acknowledged that the sports books have a role in policing the fixing of games by reporting unusual line swings or irregular betting patterns to regulators.
Still, he said he found nothing positive about the sports book environment or the culture of betting on amateur or collegiate sports. He said he limited his observations primarily to the sports books and not other casino games or activities.
Asked if he also was looking for any copyright or game telecast matters similar to those complained about by the National Football League prior to last month's Super Bowl game, Saum said he observed three things that he plans to take back to the NCAA's legal staff for review.
"My primary reason for being there was to be observant of the issues related to the sports book and to become better educated," he said. "But if I see infringement issues, I noted them. I'm not a lawyer, so I can't really tell anything for sure about whether there were any problems."
Asked to describe what he saw, Saum declined to give details, saying he wanted to brief his legal staff before making any comments.
"What I think most of our members will find interesting is how many different ways there are to bet on a basketball game as well as how betting exists on a number of other collegiate sports," he said. "Some of our members may be a little naive about betting."
He noted that in one sports book he visited, he saw futures bets posted on collegiate hockey games.
"A lot of our members think this is just a basketball and football issue," he said. "But it goes beyond those sports."
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