Ohtani – Oh No!

Yesterday, Sports Hub mentioned that Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, had stolen money from him and ended up being fired. Well, there is way more to the story. With more details now available, it appears that the first version of the story was something like this.

Mizuhara, who has been with Ohtani as his interpreter since he began playing in MLB, had a gambling addiction. He racked up some serious debts, apparently somewhere in the neighborhood of $4.5 million. Initially, Mizuhara told the media that Ohtani helped his friend by paying off the gambling debts. There is a record of several wire transfers of $500K each from a bank account owned by Ohtani.

Then, Mizuhara revealed that Ohtani knew nothing about the wire transfers. The interpreter told ESPN that Ohtani had no knowledge of gambling, debts, or the efforts to pay off those debts. Mizuhara was on the hook for the $4.5 million to a southern California bookmaker named Mathew Bowyer. Keep in mind that sports betting is illegal in California and will likely never be legal. 

Bowyer is currently being investigated by the IRS. The good news about this fiasco is that Ohtani is batting .300 through the two games of the Seoul Series. Ohtani also does not gamble. The Dodgers, who employed Mizuhara, fired him after learning of the situation. There’s likely even more to the story, which will continue to develop over the next several days.

Upset City! NCAA Tournament Doesn’t Disappoint

The first day of the NCAA tournament didn’t disappoint fans. While there are some very happy fans at Oakland University, Duquesne University, and NC State, there are also some very happy bettors. 

Yesterday’s biggest upset went to Oakland, winners of the Horizon League. The 14th-seeded Grizzlies took down No. 3 Kentucky 80-76. Jack Gohlke hit 10 three-pointers and scored a game-high 32 points to lead Oakland to the upset. A $100 bettor that grabbed Oakland just after the odds were released would have added $900 to his bankroll.

It’s a similar story for underdogs Duquesne and NC State. The Dukes surprised everyone by winning the Atlantic-10 tournament title. Yesterday, Duquesne, the No. 11 seed in the East Region, beat No. 6 BYU, 71-67. 

The ACC champion Wolfpack continued their improbable run with an 80-67 win over No. 6 Texas Tech. NC State, the 11th seed, won five straight games to capture the ACC tournament title. The Wolfpack will take on Oakland in the second round on Saturday. With the No. 11 team playing the No. 14 team in Round 2 of the South Region, you can bet a ton of brackets are out of Sports Hub’s March Madness Bracket Contest.

Sports Hub Handicappers Crushing NCAA Tourney

If only there was a way I could win all of my NCAA tournament bets. Well, there is. It’s called a Sports Hub membership. Let’s say you joined Sports Hub – which is free by the way – and went to the members’ area yesterday. You searched through the database and found some college basketball handicappers to follow.

If you followed any of the Top 7 cappers on yesterday’s college basketball leaderboard, you would have earned a profit. Combined, those seven cappers went 21-0 and cashed in $2165 in winnings! 

Our top handicapper yesterday was Sports Hub expert Sean Kuchman who alone would have earned you $765. Sean went 7-0 on his college basketball picks on his way to an $1190 day. That’s why it pays to have a Sports Hub membership.

Here’s what yesterday’s leaderboard looked like.

• Big Sean: No, not the rapper, but Big Sean Kuchman. As mentioned, he hit all of his CBB picks and went 13-2 for the day. He’s got $1745 in winnings over the last three days now.
• An inside job: Sas Insider went 17-10 yesterday, almost exclusively on college basketball picks. With $629 in winnings, Sas Insider moved up the 30-day leaderboard into fourth place. Sports Hub Insider used its inside information to go 5-2 and earn $390. SHI was 2-1 on college basketball picks.
• Five spot: James Acker put up a five-spot…5-0, 3-0 on CBB picks and $500 added to the bankroll. 
• More Sports Hub experts, more winners: Rounding out the Top 5 were Sports Hub experts Robert Jones and Kyle Buchman along with Scott Wetzel of Paid Picks by Scott. All three cappers went 3-0 and took home $300. All three of Robert’s picks were on the NCAA tourney and two of Kyle’s were. SportsHub’s finest will keep those March Madness picks coming today!

More Than Just Basketball & Ohtani

While the NCAA tournament – and especially three big upsets yesterday – is the big item trending today, there is more. Team USA men’s soccer notched a big win yesterday. Shohei Ohtani returns home amid a mess and a New Orleans Pelicans star will miss two weeks.

Here’s today’s trending news.

• Team USA moves on to the final: In the CONCACAF Nations League semifinals, Team USA beat Jamaica 3-1 to earn a spot in the final. They will face Mexico on Sunday.
• Ingram will miss two weeks: New Orleans star Brandon Ingram hyperextended a knee in Thursday night’s loss to Orlando. He will miss the next two weeks at a minimum. He’ll be re-evaluated in two weeks. 
• NCAA upsets: As mentioned, there were three big upsets in the NCAA tournament. Will it happen again today?

• Ohtani asks for investigation: As we know now, Shohei Ohtani did not know that his interpreter Ippei Mizuhara was stealing money from him to pay off gambling debts. Roughly $4.5 million was transferred from an Ohtani bank account to a California bookie to pay off Mizuhara’s gambling debts.

Watch the NCAA Tournament

Yes, it’s no secret that it’s Friday and it’s time for Day 2 of the NCAA tournament. There is another upset or two out there that will shock everyone and screw up a ton of brackets. There is also a lot of other sports action today. 

If basketball isn’t your thing, there are still plenty of betting options on the table. Sports Hub’s expert handicappers are always just a tap away. Log into the members’ area anytime to see the latest picks available from our experts.

Here’s what you could bet on today.

1. NCAA tournament Day 2: Once again, there is a full day of NCAA hoops action. There are 16 first round tournament games on the schedule. No. 8 Northwestern takes on No. 9 Florida Atlantic in the East Region. Tip off for that game is at 12:15 p.m. ET.
2. MLB Spring Training: Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers will head back to the States after the Seoul Series. Los Angeles is off, but the rest of MLB will play 18 games today.
3. Late season NBA playoff run: It’s an NBATV doubleheader tonight among the eight games on the schedule. Cleveland is at Minnesota in the first game. Philadelphia is in Los Angeles to face the Lakers in the late game.

4. Light night on the ice: There are four games on the NHL schedule tonight as teams get ready for a big day tomorrow.
5. Golf: It’s Day 2 of the Valspar Championship. Kevin Streelman entered Round 2 with the lead after shooting a first-round 64.
6. Tennis: It’s Round 2 at the 2024 Miami Open. Women’s top seed Iga Swiatek will play today as will men’s No. 2 and 3 seeds, Jannick Sinner and Daniil Medvedev.
7. Soccer: It’s actually a big soccer day, too, as a number of international friendlies are taking place. There are two FIFA World Cup qualifying matches and two NWSL matches. MLS is back at it tomorrow.

It’s another great day in the sports world. No Shohei Ohtani today, but that story will continue to develop. The NCAA tournament is the big thing all weekend and Sports Hub has all of the best March Madness picks. If you haven’t already, become a member and enjoy cashing all those winning tickets!