The Iowa Hawkeyes battle the Tennessee Volunteers to open the Sunday Round of 32 tournament schedule. The Vols are listed on the NCAA boards as a -8 to -8.5 point spread favorite with the total posted at 155.5. Predicting which Iowa team shows up may get you the money here. Prognosticator Dan Jamison thinks he has an edge in this game that bettors should follow. Get his play here.
Big Ten rival Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Michigan State Spartans meet in the round of 32. The Gophers used a lethal 3-point game to win their opener, but face a Spartans club that is allowing just 29.9% from behind the arc in neutral court games. MSU throttled them by 24 points in an earlier match-up so is a repeat the logical bet? Read Dan’s analysis and get his tournament pick.
The SEC champion Auburn Tigers take to the court at Vivint Smart Home Arena to battle the Kansas Jayhawks in a solid Round of 32 game. Auburn just got by a pesky NMSU 78-77 team in their NCAA tournament opener and Kansas put a 87-53 beat down on an overmatched Northeastern club. Some bettors are starting to wonder if the SEC overrated and the public is favoring the Jayhawks. Hmmm. Read on to get Dan’s pick on this game.
Baylor has been all over the lace this season, being good enough to sweep Iowa State and get the win versus Texas Tech but playing crappy enough to lose an Oklahoma State at home. There’s no telling what we’re going to get from Baylor, but the Bears showed what they’re capable of giving against Syracuse by hitting 16 shots from behind the arc. Can a hot Baylor team keep them within 13 of the Zags? DJ has your college hoops pick!
The Gaels aren’t a great team, but they’re on a bit of a run, having won 10 in a row to get to this point. Iona has found its way to the Dance for the fourth straight year. But do they have what it takes to improve on last year’s result where they lost by 22 to Duke? DJ has your Iona vs UNC prediction!
Big favorites versus teams that will make the most of every minute including garbage time are tough to bet on. For the casual bettor it can be the stuff of ulcers. Your team is up by 35 early and you still have to sweat the second unit! Against a NDSU like this that can shoot it and shoot it well, you run the risk of allowing them to hang around and keep the game within a reasonable deficit. That’s doubly true against a North Dakota State. The Bison are excellent from the charity stripe and would easily be able to keep the game’s margin under 25 points if they can create enough opportunities. In a game where a team like Duke is up 25, there’s a tendency for reserves to get lazy on defense and give up open looks in the dying seconds. Dan Jamison predicts if that will be the case for Duke and gives his free pick!
Baylor gonna Baylor. Actually, the Bears’ tendency to choke on the biggest stage wasn’t even given a chance to rear its head this time, as the Bears went into a four-game skid at the end of the season, losing convincingly in the Big 12 tournament to Iowa State to cap their regular season. Can the Bears rebound from its nasty Iowa State loss and beat Syracuse straight up? DJ has the basketball pick!
Tuesday was a very uncharacteristic performance for Fairleigh Dickinson, as the Knights got outshot from behind the arc by Prairie View. That doesn’t happen often as the Knights are one of the most accurate shooting teams from 3-point range in the nation. Can Gonzaga defend the arc well enough to win by 28 and help bettors beat their bookie?
With 48 teams having an unprotected seed in terms of travel, the first round often features a matchup where one team has to travel a long distance and the other does not. That’s the case here, as Villanova only has to cover 200 miles while Saint Mary’s must cross three time zones. So it’s time to jump on Villanova, right? Not necessarily. DJ breaks down this first round pick!
Kentucky has been in this situation many times before and is expected to put the game away very quickly. The longer Abilene Christian hangs around — which might be longer than people think — the more difficult it will be for Kentucky to get separation and score the comfortable victory that’s expected here. Translation, Kentucky scoring early takes their soul and gets Kentucky bettors the -22 point cover.