“March Madness” proved to be a huge gateway for betting in North Carolina, where the state lottery commission reported $659.3 million handle via sports betting apps in just three weeks of action, according to figures released Tuesday.
Sports betting in the Tar Heel State launched March 11, right before the start of the ACC Tournament. NC State stunned many by winning five games in five days as the No. 10 seed to capture the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, knocking off Tobacco Road rivals Duke and North Carolina along the way.
The Wolfpack then took their fans and Tar Heel State bettors on a wilder ride by reaching the Final Four for the first time since 1982, doing so as a No. 11 seed. They beat Duke in the South Region finals to cap off their stunning run, losing to Purdue in the national semifinals.