First round March Madness betting action picks back up on Friday with another 16-game slate loaded with a plethora of juicy matchups. Hopefully we added to the bankroll on Thursday to set us up for another great showing today! I’ve got six more spots circled to take advantage of at the online sportsbook and demand you put them all in a round robin so as to fatten up the bottom line for the remainder of the Tournament. Here’s to hoping we put a bow on the first round and have gas to cook with moving forward!
Bet NCAA Tournament Odds at Bookmaker
Friday, March 17 Parlay #1
St. Mary’s -4 vs. VCU
Montana State +8.5 vs. Kansas State
Michigan State -2 vs. USC
Florida Atlantic +115 vs. Memphis
Creighton -5.5 vs. NC State
Drake +115 vs. Miami
Payout: $100 to win $6321.84
St. Mary’s Gaels
Many will be quick to write off Randy Bennett’s Gaels due to laying an enormous turd in the WCC tournament title game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs. I won’t be one of the many. In fact, I think it’s preposterous that Aidan Mahaney and his mates are offering up an 11-1 rate of return to win the “Region of Death” – otherwise knowns as the West Region - behind the likes of TCU, UConn, Gonzaga, Kansas, and UCLA. My bullish stance on this team comes with the way it goes about its business defensively. St. Mary’s ranks No. 9 in the country in defensive efficiency per KenPom. It ranks No. 20 in 2-point defense and limits the opposition to a 32.0 success rate from beyond the arc (No. 72). VCU’s run up against the nation’s No. 135 schedule strength and the No. 136 defensive strength. While the offense rates out well analytically, most of the production has been accrued via forcing copious amounts of turnovers (No. 6) into transition points. The Gaels take good enough care of the basketball (No. 60) to take that out of the equation. If the Rams shots aren’t falling, Mitchell Saxen and Kyle Bowen are going to accrue huge rebounding tallies as big a rebounding advantage the No. 5 seed owns in this matchup – the number to beat is short!
Montana State Bobcats
I don’t know much about the Montana State Bobcats having not seen them play a lick over the course of the regular season. However, I watched them lock up the Big Sky tournament title by way of taking down Northern Colorado, Weber State, and Northern Arizona and came away impressed with the way Danny Sprinkle’s kids went about their business. Bigs Raequan Battle, Jubrile Belo, and Great Osobor are going to be a load for K-State’s weak interior defense to contend with all game long. The Bobcats big man trio will make life tough for a Wildcats offense that depends on doing things close to the rack. With both squads horrendous from beyond the arc, I expect this to be a slower paced game with the team that best does the job of converting close to the rack coming out on top. The Bobcats also do a fantastic job of getting to the stripe (No. 5) where they convert at a 75.1 percent clip (No. 46). K-State is foul prone (No. 298)! This number’s a possession rich in my book, and the Wildcats could be on upset watch if they don’t play their hand right!
Michigan State Spartans
I wasn’t bullish on the Spartans over the course of the regular season and into the B1G tourney evidenced by hammering Ohio State in the team’s third meeting, but I like them in this spot against this underwhelming bunch of Trojans. MSU’s guard play is some of the best in the country with senior Tyson Walker (14.6 PPG) and junior A.J. Hoggard (12.5 PPG/6.0 APG) leading the charge. Joey Hauser (14.2 PPG) can be considered the third with his ability to add both in scoring and dispersing the basketball. They’re the ringleaders of the nation’s No. 41 offensive efficiency predicated upon the unit’s ability of being effective from long range. MSU sports the No. 3 ranked 3-point efficiency in the land and USC isn’t great at defending the perimeter (No. 117). Should this one come down to executing at the charity stripe, Sparty owns the advantage there as well. I like Izzo in this coin flip against Andy Enfield.
Florida Atlantic Owls
If the offensive explosion Memphis put forth in the AAC tournament was real, this selection on FAU likely gets blown out of the water. I however will pay up to see if Anfernee Hardaway’s Tigers have it in them to run with one of the best offenses in the country. Florida Atlantic isn’t a team many a March Madness bettor will be familiar with simply because of the fact that it doesn’t reside in one of the power conferences. Make no mistake about it, Dusty May’s kids will take to the Nationwide Arena hardwood looking to bust brackets! Armed with an offense that tickles the twine for just short of 80 points per game and locks it down at the other end of the court (No. 60), the Owls have the intangibles required to pull the slight upset. Florida Atlantic’s willingness to let it fly from deep (No. 30) and ability to clean the defensive glass (No. 26) has me leaning in their direction to come out on top of this coin flip. That paired with seeing Zach Edey square off against a decent 7-footer in Vladislav Goldin in the second round is also pulling at my purse strings.
Creighton Bluejays
The tilt between Creighton and NC State can potentially be the most lopsided of all the 6/11 first round matchups in my estimation. Though the Bluejays surprisingly flamed out in a big way in the Big East tournament, I’m of the belief Greg McDermott’s kids were saving their best for the Big Dance. Wake me the next time NC State wins a big game! The Wolfpack finished 12-8 in a conference that only sent five teams to the NCAA tournament. Their biggest win arguably came in the form of an 83-81 overtime win at home against Miami. That’s it! As for Creighton, it ran up against superior competition all throughout conference play and logged a win in non-con play against Arkansas while suffering tough competitive losses to Arizona and Texas. The BJ’s will own a decisive advantage at the defensive end of the court where it should be able to reel in a majority of NCST’s misses. Ryan Kalkbrenner clogging the paint will be an issue for Terquavion Smith and Co. So long as he isn’t marred by early foul trouble and Creighton doesn’t kill itself with turnovers, I expect the Bluejays to win this one going away!
Drake Bulldogs
It pains me to do this, but I have no choice but to fade the Hurricanes against a Drake outfit that I believe has the makeup to be one of those infamous No. 12 seeds that busts brackets. The Bulldogs excel at taking away what Miami does best in clogging the paint (No. 63) and locking down the perimeter (No. 35). If Norchad Omier is forced to miss or not play 100 percent due to the ankle injury sustained in the ACC tourney, it’s going to be incredibly tough for Miami to match points against Roman Penn and the Bulldogs who will take to the MVP Arena hardwood owners of the nation’s No. 68 ranked offensive efficiency. The Bulldogs rank No. 3 in defensive rebounding and will clean a majority of the Canes misses should Isaiah Wong and Co. struggle as I expect. Should Miami get out of sorts late and send Drake to the line repeatedly, the Bulldogs will seal the deal with it the No. 17 ranked free throw shooting team in the country. Arch Madness moves into the second round
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