The real challenge for you college hoops junkies is picking a bracket against the point spread. Get a perfect score and then we’ll talk. There are no surprises with the opening lines for Thursday’s NCAA Tournament 16-game slate. All the higher-seeded teams are favorites for the simple reason that they are considered by the committee to be better. And the higher the seed, the bigger the spread. Only one No. 1 seed is in action with Gonzaga laying 27 points to Fairleigh Dickinson. I have the Zags making a deep run in the Tourney and I fully expect them to bounce back from that upset loss they suffered to Saint Mary’s in the West Coast Conference final. Let’s don’t forget what happened last year when Virginia became the first No. 1 to lose in the first-round when the Cavs were a 20.5-point favorite over UMBC.
BookMaker.eu will have college basketball odds and live betting options for every game on the Thursday schedule.
NCAA Tournament Betting at Bookmaker.eu
College Basketball Schedule for Thursday, March 21, 2019
No. 10 Minnesota vs. No. 7 Louisville ( -5, 136 ), 12:15 p.m. ET (CBS)
No. 14 Yale vs. No. 3 LSU ( -7, 157 ), 12:40 p.m. ET (truTV)
No. 12 New Mexico State vs. No. 5 Auburn ( -6, 146 ), 1:30 p.m. ET (TNT)
No. 13 Vermont vs. No. 4 Florida State ( -9, 133 ), 2 p.m. ET (TBS)
No. 15 Bradley vs. No. 2 Michigan State ( -18, 133.5 ), 2:45 p.m. ET (CBS)
No. 11 Belmont vs. No. 6 Maryland ( -3, 147 ), 3:10 p.m. ET (truTV)
No. 13 Northeastern vs. No. 4 Kansas ( -6.5, 143 ), 4 p.m. ET (TNT)
No. 12 Murray State vs. No. 5 Marquette ( -3, 150.5 ), 4:30 p.m. ET (TBS)
No. 10 Florida vs. No. 7 Nevada ( -2, 133.5 ), 6:50 p.m. ET (TNT)
No. 15 Abilene Christian vs. No. 2 Kentucky ( -21, 132 ), 7:10 p.m. ET (CBS)
No. 11 Saint Mary's vs. No. 6 Villanova ( -4, 129.5 ), 7:20 p.m. ET (TBS)
No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson vs. No. 1 Gonzaga ( -27, 152.5 ), 7:27 p.m. ET (truTV)
No. 15 Montana vs. No. 2 Michigan ( -15, 130 ), 9:20 p.m. ET (TNT)
No. 10 Seton Hall vs. No. 7 Wofford ( -3, 144.5 ), 9:40 p.m. ET (CBS)
No. 14 Old Dominion vs. No. 3 Purdue ( -12.5, 126.5 ), 9:50 p.m. ET (TBS)
No. 9 Baylor vs. No. 8 Syracuse ( -2, 129.5 ), 9:57 p.m. ET (truTV)
March Madness Bracket Challenge
Thursday Opening Lines Report
UMBC’s first-round upset of No. 1 Virginia and the Final Four run by No. 11 seed Loyola-Chicago last year were indications that the gap is closing between the elite and the mid-majors. Could we see more of the same this year? I don’t know, but it’s called March Madness for a reason.
Gonzaga crushed its WCC opponents during the regular season, and FDU would probably be among the better teams in that conference. But they certainly aren’t as good as the Zags, who are still fuming over that last loss. It’s hard to imagine a team as deep and talented as the Bulldogs having another clunker, so the Knights better be prepared for an onslaught.
We have some other big favorites and, of course, those are the teams with a higher-seed in the Tournament. Three No. 2s are in action with all having a spread of at least 15 points in their games. The largest is Kentucky, which is laying 21-points to Southland Conference tournament champ Abilene Christian. Never underestimate a team making its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance and if the Wildcats pull off the upset maybe the school can give coach Joe Golding an advance for a new suit, because he would certainly deserve it.
Big Ten tournament champ Michigan State will open against Missouri Valley Conference champion Bradley as an 18-point favorite. The Braves, who went 9-9 in league play, upset top-ranked Loyola-Chicago in the MVC semis before rallying to beat Northern Iowa for the automatic bid. Michigan will give 15 points to Big Sky regular season and tournament champion Montana, which makes a second straight trip to the Dance.
Another Big Ten team No. 3 Purdue is also a double-digit favorite. The Boilermakers are spotting Old Dominion 12.5-points.
The lines shrink after that. The shortest is in the only 8/9 matchup of the day with Syracuse laying 2-points to the Baylor Bears. Cuse will play without senior guard Frank Howard, who was suspended on Wednesday, and we’ll see where the line goes from there. They will have Tyus Battle back after their leading scorer missed the ACC tournament with an injury.
NCAA Basketball Betting
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