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Apparently the seedings for the NCAA Tournament are just a suggestion. Entering the Dance as the 12th seed in the South Region, the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders did it again. After pulling off one of the biggest upsets in tournament history last year as a No. 15 seed, the Blue Raiders felt pretty good about their chances in the first round. A lot of other people liked them also, and they were a favorite in their win over Minnesota. A trip to the Sweet 16 is on the line when MTSU tangles with the Butler Bulldogs on Saturday.Don't miss the hardwood action from the BMO Harris Bradley Center at 7:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 18, 2017. Catch every moment of the game live on TBS. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Saturday schedule.... 

The Saint Mary’s Gaels got out to a 15-point lead in the first half and while they gave a bit back after the break, they still managed to contain VCU enough to get to the Round of 32 where they’ll meet up with the No. 2 seeded Arizona Wildcats. Arizona is on fire right now. Their defense and size could be the differentiators. Add in the way their offense is playing and this team could be the one to beat in the whole West Region, let alone this game.... 

In a 5-11 upset victory, the Xavier Musketeers topped the Maryland Terrapins in one of the more anticipated upsets of the first round. As a reward, the No. 11 seed will get a chance to face the Florida State Seminoles. The Eagles from Florida Gulf Coast gave the Seminoles a run for their money, but the West Region’s No. 3 seed continues to dance with another favorable matchup on deck.... 

The dynamic Gonzaga Bulldogs’ offense managed just 26 points in the first half against South Dakota State, but they avoided become history’s first No.1 seed loss in the Round of 64, cruising to an easy 66-46 victory over the Jackrabbits. They’ll now get to face-off against the No.8 seeded Northwestern Wildcats who have nothing to lose, having already recorded a win in their first ever appearance in the Big Dance.... 

UNC Wilmington played the Virginia Cavaliers surprisingly tough out the early part of this game, but a couple big games from Marial Shayok off the bench and London Perrantes on the outside allowed Virginia to come away with the victory. Now, they’re on to the Round of 32 where they’ll meet up with the No.4 seeded Florida Gators having handled East Tennessee State in an easier game than the Cavs experienced, winning by 15.... 

SMU won the American Conference during the regular season and is looking to make a March Madness push. USC beat SMU during the regular season, so even though the Mustangs are the higher seed, this could be an interesting matchup.The Trojans eked into the Big Dance but have the ability to make things interesting against SMU.... 

Kansas has been one of the best teams in the country all year long and are expected to cruise in this matchup. UC Davis made some big plays late to knock off North Carolina Central in one of the First Four matchups, but the Big Dance won’t be lasting any longer.While Kansas should win in a blowout, the question will be how many points the Jayhawks win by and if that will cover the spread.... 

While every other team in the South Region waits go get going, the Kansas State Wildcats got the nerves of competing in the grandest spectacle out of the way by knocking off Wake Forest Tuesday in a play-in game. The Wildcats have a short turnaround, heading to Sacramento for a showdown with the Cincinnati Bearcats. Bruce Weber inspired his team with anecdotes of how playing in the First Four is an advantage. We’ll see how good of a story teller he is.... 

A No. 1 seed has never fallen to a 16 so it would be foolish to think New Orleans has much of a chance. The Mountaineers sneaked past the New Orleans Privateers in a First Four matchup so it has felt the rush of winning an NCAA Tournament game, but this is where their run will end.Villanova is a heavy favorite and the real drama will be whether it can cover the spread. Mount St. Mary’s may not have as many nerves since it has already played one game on a national stage, which could help it try to stick around as long as possible.... 

How the Oregon Ducks respond to the loss of one of their star players will give us a good idea of how far they’ll go in the NCAA Tournament. The Ducks didn’t fare too well in the game immediately following the diagnosis of Chris Boucher, falling to Arizona in the Pac-12 championship game. But the Ducks are a deep squad and with a few extra days to adjust, and the Iona Gaels as a first round opponent, Oregon should still be a Final Four favorite.... 

Baylor finished among the top teams in its conference and has many impressive wins on the season. The Bears spent a large chunk of the season in the top-5 nationally but fell off a bit down the stretch.New México State captured the WAC conference tournament to advance to March Madness and now hopes to stay around awhile, but will be a double-digit underdog to Baylor.... 

Michigan State is usually a national championship contender but has struggled all season. Miami was in the middle of the pack of a strong ACC and this game is expected to be competitive.The Hurricanes are a slight favorite but this seems like a true 8-9 contest in that the outcome will be a toss-up.... 

Getting into the NCAA Tournament is a big deal for some schools. Not for the UCLA Bruins, however. The bar was set high by John Wooden and the likes of Lew Alcindor and Bill Walton back in the day, and a national championship is expected, even if it’s been over two decades since the Bruins last won a title and nine seasons since a Final Four appearance. This could be UCLA’s best team in some time and the chance to hang another banner at Pauley Pavilion begins with a matchup against the Kent State Golden Flashes.... 

A huge contrast in styles is set to go down in Greenville, SC on Friday night when Steve Wojciechowski's Marquette Golden Eagles square off against Frank Martin’s South Carolina Gamecocks in the 7/10 matchup of the East Region. Marquette is back in the dance for the first time since 2013, and it will no doubt hit the ground running looking to unleash its high-powered offense upon a Cocks’ defense that ranks out as one of the best in the country.... 

Due to Oakland and Valparaiso succumbing to shocking early defeats in the Horizon League tournament, the sea parted for the Northern Kentucky Norse who went on to take full advantage and punch their first-ever ticket to the dance in the program’s very first year of eligibility. Unfortunately, the No. 2 seed Kentucky Wildcats await in the first round making this one of the toughest challenges for John Brannen’s troops who fell to the only two teams it faced that made the tournament in the regular season.... 

No matchup in the first round has raised more eyebrows and created more of a backlash in the direction of the Selection Committee than that of the 7/10 pairing between Wichita State and Dayton. The former is the No. 10 seed and the latter the No. 7. However, Wichita State has been lined the decided favorite by the linemakers putting the committee’s seeding of the two teams under the microscope with magnification set to 1.21 gigawatts.... 

The No. 15 Jacksonville State Gamecocks look to have a world of hurt in store for them on Friday afternoon when they run up against the No. 2 Louisville Cardinals in front of what will no doubt be a pro-Louisville crowd with Bankers Life just a quick two hour trip away from campus. With the Ville ineligible to partake in last year’s NCAA tournament due to a self-imposed ban, they’ll be looking to make up for lost time.... 

Some major star power will take to the hardwood to kick things off on Friday afternoon when the Oklahoma State Cowboys and red hot Michigan Wolverines lock horns in the 7/10 pairing of the Midwest Region. John Beilein’s kids just parlayed a near catastrophic event into winning the Big Ten tournament and will hit the hardwood in Indy oozing with confidence. On the flipside, Brad Underwood’s squad will be looking to halt a three game losing streak to earn the program its first Big Dance win since 2009.... 

The Connecticut Huskies have the best women's basketball team in the nation, and they've been that way for years and years. We know that the Huskies are going to be the overwhelming favorites to win the National Championship for a fifth consecutive season, but today, we're going to look at some of the other teams who might have a shot at cutting down the nets in Dallas.... 

Betting on each game of the NCAA Tournament and filling out a bracket isn't where all of the wagering fun stops! Here at BookMaker.eu, we're counting down our Top 5 March Madness props that should make the tournament extra interesting to follow.... 

The Creighton Bluejays used a strong first part of the season and needed that to soften the blow in the latter stages. The Jays won 18 of their first 19 games before losing the country’s leader in assists, Maurice Watson, to a knee injury. Since then Creighton has gone just 7-8 and needed a trip to the Big East title game to solidify its status as a NCAA Tournament team. In as the sixth-seed in the Midwest Region, the Bluejays lock horns with the Rhode Island Rams in the opener.... 

The Sun Belt Conference came up with a big upset in last year’s NCAA tournament after Arkansas Little Rock shocked Purdue as 8.5 point underdogs. If that we’re to occur this season, the Troy Trojans would likely ruin just about everyone’s bracket like MTSU did last season in beating Michigan State. While it’s another 15/2 match-up, the No. 2 this time around is a Duke Blue Devils squad that just caught fire to win the ACC tournament. There won’t be any huge moneyline ticket cash in this one, but a cover is certainly a possibility.... 

Off a disappointing loss in the semis of the ACC tournament to the hated Duke Blue Devils, the South Region top seeded North Carolina Tar Heels will look to vent some frustration upon the No. 16 seed Texas Southern Tigers from the lesser SWAC. The Heels have failed to cover each of their last three first round games in the Big Dance, but the betting public looks to be backing them to end that streak in what should amount to being a layup for the more powerful reps out of the ACC.... 

The winner of the 8/9 matchup in the South Region will likely have to match wits with the region’s top seed North Carolina Tar Heels in the Round of 32, but before that occurs, there’s a game to be played on Friday. The Arkansas Razorbacks just fell in the SEC title game to Kentucky, while the Seton Hall Pirates gave defending champion Villanova a major run for its money in the semis of the Big East tourney. Each enters playing some solid ball, so this matchup should be competitive till the bitter end.... 

Two mid-majors that are no strangers to the NCAA Tournament will meet in the 7-10 matchup in Salt Lake City on Thursday. The St. Mary’s Gaels haven’t been to the Big Dance since 2013 after getting snubbed despite a 29-6 record last season and are ready to show the world what they are capable of. Their opponent will be the Virginia Commonwealth Rams, who have been in this situation often in recent years. VCU has now made it to March Madness for seven straight seasons and....