If you think the Madness only happens in the NCAA Tournament, think again. We got our first taste of it on Tuesday when No. 1 ranked Gonzaga was upset by Saint Mary’s in the West Coast Conference championship. That’s a boost for the WCC, which now gets two teams into the Dance and proves once again that David can slay Goliath.
Several BIG conferences get their tournament underway on Wednesday with first-round action in the Big Ten, Big 12, Big East and Big Sky taking place. First-round games in the A-10, Conference USA, Mountain West, Pac-12, Southland and WAC will also tipoff. The Patriot League will crown a tournament champion and issue a ticket to the Dance to either Bucknell or Colgate
BookMaker.eu will have college basketball odds and live betting options for every game on the Wednesday schedule.
College Basketball Schedule for Wednesday, March 13, 2019
Clemson vs. NC State, 12 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Miami vs. No. 16 Virginia Tech, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Arizona vs. USC, 3 p.m. ET (PAC12)
California vs. Colorado, 5:30 p.m. ET (PAC12)
Nebraska vs. Rutgers, 6:30 p.m. ET (BTN)
Butler vs. Providence, 7 p.m. ET (FS1)
Georgia vs. Missouri, 7 p.m. ET (SECN)
Oklahoma State vs. TCU, 7 p.m. ET (ESPNU)
Notre Dame vs. Louisville, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
Bucknell at Colgate, 7:30 p.m. ET (CBSSN)
West Virginia vs. Oklahoma, 9 p.m. ET (ESPNU)
Vanderbilt vs. Texas A&M, 9 p.m. ET (SECN)
Pittsburgh vs. Syracuse, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
Northwestern vs. Illinois, 9 p.m. ET (BTN)
Stanford vs. UCLA, 9 p.m. ET (PAC12)
DePaul vs. St. John's, 9:30 p.m. ET (FS1)
Washington State vs. Oregon, 11:30 p.m. ET (PAC12)
Wednesday Best Bets
Miami vs. Virginia Tech, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Never underestimate the lower seeds. That’s the mantra of the lower seeded teams. The 12-seed Hurricanes didn’t take 13-seed Wake Forest for granted especially after watching the Deacs nearly upset Duke at Cameron Indoor just last week. Behind 21 points from DJ Vasiljevic and 20 from Anthony Lawrence, the Canes moved on to face Virginia Tech in the second round of the ACC Tournament.
Tech quietly put together a solid season. I say quietly because the teams ahead of them made plenty of noise. The Hokies missed out on the double-bye finishing a game behind Florida State for fourth, yet they still matched a program record with 23 regular season wins. They overcame the loss of starting point guard Justin Robinson and rode the play of Kerry Blackshear and Nickeil Alexander-Walker that included a big win over Duke. And the Hokies easily defeated the Canes twice during the regular year. Give me the Hokies to continue their magical ride.
Bucknell at Colgate, 7:30 p.m. ET (CBSSN)
They were the class of the Patriot League during the regular season and they both continued their mastery with a pair of double-digit tournament wins to set up the championship rubber game. The teams split during the regular season with Colgate getting the tie-breaker and the right to host, which they took advantage of. And that’s huge for the Raiders, who lost just once on their home floor.
These two squared off in last year’s championship game with the roles reversed. Bucknell hosted and dominated Colgate, 83-54. With a chance for redemption on their home floor, the Raiders will have the upper hand in this one. They also have Rapolas Ivanauskas, who ranks fifth in the league in scoring and third in rebounding.
Butler vs. Providence, 7 p.m. ET (FS1)
A first-round game between the No. 8 and No. 9 seeds doesn’t always spark a lot of interest. But this is the Big East, and like we’ve seen all season anything can happen. Providence made a run to the final last year as the No. 5 seed, eventually losing to Villanova. That spurt has the Friars excited about their chances, as does a 3-2 run down the stretch that kept them out of a solo basement finish.
Instead we had a three-way tie for last, which sounds a lot worse than it actually was. Butler, Providence and DePaul all finished 7-11 in conference play, just two games out of third, so you can see how tightly packed the league was. It’s hard to beat a team three times in a season, and the Friars already have a pair over the Bulldogs. They were close games and I like Butler’s chances, but Providence has momentum heading into this game and I’ll take them as my Friday best bet.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go.
Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
