Temple’s game against UAB on Thursday wasn’t the only game played after unusual gambling activity this season, according to a new report.
athletic found The Owls had at least three other games this season that “created irregular betting patterns” before tipoff, starting with the Feb. 8 game against Memphis.
Hours before the game, the odds changed in Memphis’ favor from -6.5 to -10.5, which would have been a significant change had there not been a major injury, according to The Athletic.
The Tigers won that game by seven points.
Three weeks later, on February 28, another unusual odds change occurred, with the total for the Temple-Rice game dropping from 145 to 140.5 in the hours leading up to the championship.
Both teams combined will have just 107 points.
On March 2, just five days before news of the suspicious pattern became public, the Owls’ total against Tulsa plummeted again, this time from 144 to 136.5.
They will score a total of 139 points in that game.
The bureau’s investigation comes after UAB’s lopsided victory over Temple on Thursday drew the attention of gaming watchdog groups.
U.S. Integrity notified casinos of a significant odds change that saw the Blazers go from a 1.5-point favorite to a 7.5-point favorite before the Blazers won 100-72. According to Sports Illustrated.
The publication reported that US Integrity, which is employed by the American Athletic Conference, is monitoring Temple’s games.
“We are aware that they reported it,” AAC men’s basketball public relations director Tom Fenstermaker told SI.
Fanatics Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook will not offer odds for Sunday’s final regular-season game for Temple, UT vs. San Antonio, The Athletic reported.
“We are aware of social media posts regarding last night’s men’s basketball game,” the university said in a statement Friday. “We will thoroughly review the report in accordance with university and NCAA policies.
“While we are unable to comment further at this time, we take this matter very seriously.”
