While a number of leagues head into the final few games of the regular season, a few others are getting the Madness started with their conference tournaments underway. Teams in the Big South, Atlantic Sun, Patriot, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley and West Coast Conferences all begin the quest for the automatic bid to the Big Dance as part of a full slate of betting action on the Thursday college basketball schedule.
If you feast on mid-major action, belly up to the buffet table for games featuring the SWAC, Big West, Big Sky and MEAC. The American Athletic Conference has three teams ranked in the top-25 and they are all in action with No. 25 UCF looking to take down another ranked foe. The Golden Knights ended Houston’s long home court winning streak and hosts co-leader Cincinnati.
Some of the top games are listed below, but you can find college basketball odds and live betting options for every game on the Thursday schedule at BookMaker.eu.
College Basketball Schedule for Thursday, March 7, 2019
No. 20 Cincinnati at No. 25 UCF, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
Iowa at No. 21 Wisconsin, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Temple at UConn, 7 p.m. ET (CBSSN)
Holy Cross at Bucknell, 7 p.m. ET
Boston University at Colgate, 7 p.m. ET
Valparaiso vs. Indiana State, 7:05 p.m. ET
NJIT at Lipscomb, 8 p.m. ET
Indiana at Illinois, 8 p.m. ET (FS1)
SMU at No. 12 Houston, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
UCLA at Colorado, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
Evansville vs. Illinois State, 9:35 p.m. ET
USC at Utah, 10 p.m. ET
California at Stanford, 11 p.m. ET (ESPNU)
Thursday Best Bets
Iowa at No. 21 Wisconsin
The tide has turned for the Hawkeyes and you could see it coming. They were winning games, but just barely, and it finally caught up to them with a pair of big losses that dropped them from the rankings and raised more questions about their validity as a NCAA Tournament team.
They are going dancing with 21 victories, but two of their last four wins were by a combined 11 points against a down Indiana club, along with a one-point decision over Northwestern and a 2-point success against Rutgers. The Badgers won the first meeting while cashing at the betting window and they will ride the play of Ethan Happ to another cover in Bucky’s final home game of the year.
SMU at No. 12 Houston
Reaching heights in the rankings not seen since the Phi Slamma Jamma days of Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, the Houston Cougars had their 33-game home winning streak snapped by UCF and dropped into a tie with Cincinnati atop the AAC standings. There is no time to sulk over the loss with SMU up next and a date in Cincy on Sunday that is likely to determine the conference regular season championship.
The Cougars are one of the best defensive clubs in the country and the Mustangs have a hard time scoring the basketball, so the edge goes in favor of the home team. And with a 33-1 record in their last 34 dates on their floor, the Cougs are a respectable bunch. SMU was eyeing a possible postseason trip until a recent swoon put an end to that. The Mustangs have lost three straight and eight of their last nine, and they dropped an 11-point decision at home to the Cougs earlier this season. I don’t see SMU doing enough to cover the line in this one.
UCLA at Colorado
The once proud UCLA program would just as soon close the book on this season. They will in another week. At least the Bruins have shown some fight over the last few games. Dropping to .500 with a 24-point loss to Stanford, they rallied to beat the Oregon schools and took down cross-town rival USC in overtime.
Riding a rare hot streak behind an efficient offense led by Kris Wilkes and Jaylen Hinds, the Bruins look to get some payback on this road trip, starting with the Buffs. UCLA was embarrassed at home last month, losing 84-73 as a six-point favorite. Colorado is decent, but they aren’t 11-points better than UCLA, and I expect the Bruins display the intensity that has them on roll, making them a Thursday best bet.
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