As the year winds to a close, the college basketball season is starting to heat up. With only one college football game in action, hoops more than covered its fair share of bad beats on the weekend -- but that Army-Navy football game and Sunday's NFL slate still had plenty to offer in that regard as well.
Here are this past weekend's worst bad beats.
Saturday
DePaul Blue Demons at Northwestern Wildcats
Line: Northwestern -6
We're only one month into the season, but it's hard to imagine having a worse implosion than DePaul had on Saturday. The Blue Demons led 57-42 with less than 10 minutes left, as those who had them at +6 were already celebrating a winning bet. Not so fast, my friend.
Northwestern proceeded to go on a 25-0 run over the next seven minutes to take, incredibly, a 10-point lead. DePaul cut the margin down to three, once again getting into position to cover, but Northwestern went a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line in the final minute and won by seven. Those who had the underdog lost by a point and probably won't ever feel safe about a basketball bet again.
Final score: Northwestern 75, DePaul 68 (Northwestern covered)
Seton Hall Pirates vs. Kentucky Wildcats
Line: Over/under 142.5
Seton Hall-Kentucky was one of the most exciting games of the college basketball season thus far. It was one play, however, that had bettors not so excited with the result of this early-season matchup at Madison Square Garden.
Kentucky led 31-25 at halftime, with the 56 combined points putting these teams well below the pace for the closing over/under of 142.5. The scoring picked up in the second half, but overtime would still be the only way that those on the under could lose.
Seton Hall's Myles Powell appeared to give his team the win with a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to take a 70-67 lead. Only a miracle would have saved Kentucky at that point. The Wildcats responded with a half-court shot by Keldon Johnson, who tied it at the buzzer. It was the ultimate dagger to those on the under, who probably didn't bother watching the overtime period that was eventually won by Seton Hall.
Final score: Seton Hall 84, Kentucky 83 in OT (total went over)
Navy Midshipmen vs. Army Black Knights
Line: Army -7.5
Army was in complete control of this rivalry game after three quarters. The Knights had limited Navy to just 64 yards of offense in the first 45 minutes, but Army's lead was only 10-0 -- making those who laid the 7.5 points sweat this game out until the end.
Navy finally got on the scoreboard with 7:10 left in the game, when Garret Lewis' one-yard touchdown made the score 10-7 Army. The Midshipmen fumbled on their next possession, which led to a one-yard score for Army's Kelvin Hopkins Jr. -- putting the Knights up 10 with 1:28 left. Bettors who took the Knights had to like their chances at that point, but Navy, a team that hadn't completed a pass in first three quarters, popped a few big pass plays to set up a 46-yard field goal attempt with 34 seconds left. With the spread of the only FBS game of the day riding on the foot of Bennett Moehring, the Midshipmen kicker knocked in the field goal to hand those who took Army a loss by a half-point.
Final score: Army 17, Navy 10 (Navy covered)
Sunday
New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Line: Saints -9.5
The Buccaneers had covered four straight games as a home underdog entering Sunday, and it looked like that trend would continue against the Saints. Tampa Bay was easily covering the big spread as it led 14-3 at halftime. The second half, however, would be a different story.
The game changed when Taysom Hill blocked a punt to set the Saints up in good field position halfway through the third quarter. New Orleans scored its first touchdown of the game after the block, cutting the Buccaneers' lead down to 14-11 entering the fourth quarter. That marked the first of four straight scoring drives for the Saints, who went up 28-14 after Mark Ingram's 17-yard touchdown with 7:26 left. The Buccaneers were stymied by the New Orleans defense throughout the second half, but had a chance for a backdoor cover on their final drive. Tampa Bay drove down to the New Orleans 26-yard line, but the end result was a Jameis Winston interception with one second left. It was a tough loss for those on the underdog, who watched the Saints go on that 25-0 run after halftime.
Final score: Saints 28, Buccaneers 14 (Saints covered)
Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
Line: Over/under 45.5
Late fireworks caused misery for those who had the under in this one. The Cowboys led 6-0 at halftime, with half of those points coming on a franchise-record 62-yard field goal by Brett Maher. With less than eight minutes left in the game, the two teams were tied, 9-9. But that's when things got crazy in Arlington.
Philadelphia and Dallas combined to score four touchdowns in just over a six-minute span, including a Darren Sproles' touchdown with 1:39 to send the total over by a half-point in regulation. By the time Amari Cooper won the game in overtime, those on the under had already seen enough. That last score also cost bettors who had the Eagles +3.5.
Final score: Cowboys 29, Eagles 23 in OT (total went over)