The NCAA Tournament is upon us, and that means it’s time for filling out brackets, clearing your schedule and staying glued to the television as your favorite team battles through the gauntlet.
With both retail and online sportsbooks live in multiple states and more expected to launch later like DraftKings Sportsbook Ohio, another key part of March Madness can be placing some bets on all of the drama. Who will win it all? Who will fall flat? Which team will make a Cinderella run?
Here are some bets that could make your March much more enjoyable:
Pick Gonzaga To Win It All
This may seem like an easy pick, but it appears to be a pretty surefire one.
The Bulldogs are the No. 1 team in the country, and they’ve had an absolutely sensational season so far in getting there. Though the Bulldogs fielded a few losses earlier in the campaign, they rebounded to win every game except one down the stretch and beat the team to which they lost, Saint Mary’s, to win the WCC tournament title.
They have the No. 1 scoring offense in the entire country, averaging 87.8 points-per-game. There’s no doubt Gonzaga has earned its best-in-the-nation ranking heading into March Madness.
“It’s an amazing accomplishment,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said, according to ESPN. “It’s a reward for being good for four months, 4 1/2 months, and this tournament is a reward for being good for three weeks.
“So I think it’s an amazing accomplishment by this group and last year’s group, and these No. 1 seeds we’ve been able to earn is also simply another amazing accomplishment.”
While some bettors may think picking Gonzaga could be a trap, that the team surely can’t live up to the high expectations placed on it, there’s no denying how good these Bulldogs are. They’ve proven themselves time and time again in the regular season and conference tournament; how could any pick in the Bulldogs’ favor be a bad one?
Pencil In Tennessee Making The Final Four
Tennessee has fielded a strong season so far, and picking the Vols to make the Final Four could just win bettors some cash.
The Vols come into the NCAA Tournament with tons of momentum after cruising past Texas A&M to win the SEC tournament title. And anger is also on their side.
Despite earning multiple signature wins this season, Tennessee was given a No. 3 seed for the tournament. Many fans and analysts believed the Vols should be higher, especially compared to Duke, which was given a No. 2 seed.
“What I do believe is after Selection Sunday that the chairman or the people of the committee should have to have a national day of press conferences where they can be asked questions by you all,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes told reporters on March 14, according to Knox News.
“Not just for three minutes or two minutes. But from people who have really covered college basketball throughout.”
The Vols already boast talent, an impressive resume, with wins against Kentucky and Auburn this season, and a seasoned veteran coach in Barnes, Tennessee fits the mold of a successful March Madness team in nearly every way.
Now, the Vols are looking for vengeance as well, and it seems like a good bet to pick them to make a Final Four run. Tennessee isn’t ready to accept anything less.
Keep Taking The Over
This is March, when teams bring everything they have each game, because each game could be their last.
So many of the teams in this year’s NCAA Tournament have impressive stats, and the offensive ones truly hit the mark on how good these programs are. The lowest-scoring team in the tournament, San Diego State, averages 65.3 points-per-game, proving just how high-scoring the teams set to do battle can be.
When you combine explosive offenses with the will to win that each team will bring to the tournament, the best bet here is to take the over whenever you can. Don’t worry about the teams that are playing or how the matchup looks on paper; take the over. March Madness is all about high-scoring, fast-paced games that fans can’t turn away from, so match your pick with the product on hand.
As teams take shot after shot to pace each other in tight games or others keep pulling the trigger on 3-pointers to close the gap in blowouts, there should be no shortage of high-scoring games in March Madness this year. Make sure your bet slip reflects that.
