# Question about Competitive Games vs #1 Ranked Teams



## cody_h24 (Mar 6, 2011)

I was thinking about this and I know final score is not always the best way to determine how hard fought or close a game is but I would like to know what the point differential would have to be for a game between a non#1 ranked team vs a #1 ranked team to be competitive/hard fought/close. Obviously if the non#1 team won it would have been considered a hard fought game but I'm wondering about the point differential for a loss. Or would it be a limit on either side of a win or loss? (i.e. for it not to be a close game it must be a point differential more than 10?)

My initial thoughts are that the determining number would be between 5 and 10 (meaning that at worst, the non#1 ranked team would have to lose by 5 to 10 or less to be a close game). 

I'd like to come up with a consensus on a number so the more people who respond, the better of a number we can come up with. 

Thanks


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## kufta4 (Feb 7, 2011)

cody_h24 said:


> I was thinking about this and I know final score is not always the best way to determine how hard fought or close a game is but I would like to know what the point differential would have to be for a game between a non#1 ranked team vs a #1 ranked team to be competitive/hard fought/close. Obviously if the non#1 team won it would have been considered a hard fought game but I'm wondering about the point differential for a loss. Or would it be a limit on either side of a win or loss? (i.e. for it not to be a close game it must be a point differential more than 10?)
> 
> My initial thoughts are that the determining number would be between 5 and 10 (meaning that at worst, the non#1 ranked team would have to lose by 5 to 10 or less to be a close game).
> 
> ...



My answer would be, that would be different for every game. I've seen games close the whole way and the #1 team pull away at the end and win by 15. I've seen the #1 team control the entire game, one that was never in doubt from the opening tip and only win by single digits.

Its not possible to just come up with a single number.


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## stl775 (Oct 17, 2008)

point spread?


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## cody_h24 (Mar 6, 2011)

Do you mean the difference between the point spread before the game and the final score point differential? Could you explain?

So would you be able to say the non#1 team would have to be within X points with Y time remaining? If so, what would those numbers have to be?


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## stl775 (Oct 17, 2008)

If the point spread is 24 and the #1 team seed w/e wins by 6 you know that was a close fought game, if the number one team or seed spread is -1 and they win by 20 you know that was a blowout. Not sure if that answers your question.


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## cody_h24 (Mar 6, 2011)

So would you say if the point spread is 20 and the underdog loses by 19 would that be a close game? Where's the threshold?


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## stl775 (Oct 17, 2008)

I would chalk that up to the book being right on, lines usually move a point or two. If Toledo was playing North Carolina and the line was only twenty I would say a good game would be somewhere around ten-fifteen. If Duke was playing North Carolina and the spread was a Pick Em a blowout would be about ten-fifteen. I think most betters could care less if the game was competitive though as long as they won so they would be happy with a nineteen point difference if they were getting twenty.


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## cody_h24 (Mar 6, 2011)

Well I'm looking for a number that you can actually find that relates to how well or tightly contested or hard fought a game was played. I am pretty sure that a booky's point spread has nothing to do with that. I'm not looking for how many people betted on a game and if they won or lost. 

I think I will be sticking with a final point spread of 10 or less by the underdog including all wins by the underdog. 

Can it be assumed that a #1 team will play hard if they are down? I naturally assume that a #1 team would not want to lose considering that is the drive for teams ranked #1 (to win each game, and therefore would have to play hard to do that, especially in the face of adversity by being behind).

Thoughts?


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