Hello, friends. *extremely Jim Nance voice* I am Blakey Locks and I will be your guide this March. Every round I am going to traverse you through the trials and tribulations of betting your mortgage on 18-year-olds playing basketball. From Duke to Seton Hall to Gardner Webb, I will give you the knowledge necessary to conquer your bookie and feed your children. We will win together, lose together and laugh together. Let’s ride.

NCAA Tournament Record (2-0)

First Four- Wednesday 3/20

Last night was perfect. The fact that I have 20 hours of being undefeated during the tournament is such a good feeling. When I set out on my journey to go 67-0 I knew it would be an ambitious task but I have proven the haters and losers wrong. I am now only 65 games away from pulling off the impossible. 24 hours ago I had little confidence but if I can just do what I did last night 33 more times, I will be the greatest gambler of all time. No biggie. So without further ado, let’s make it 4-0.

(16) NC Central vs. (16) North Dakota State (-5) o/u 133.5

This an epic matchup. If last night’s 16-seed play-in game was any indication then this is going to be fantastic. There’s something about these teams knowing they are playing for the chance to get absolutely slaughtered by one of the best teams in the country that makes it so interesting. Especially in this case, because these two teams are competing for a chance to have Zion slap his nuts against their foreheads. In fact, the NC Central coach expressed his fear of Zion before they got slotted to potentially play him.

Clearly, this coach is a god damn coward and wants none of the Zion smoke. Also NC Central is BY FAR the worst team in the tournament according to KenPom.

They are over 100 teams worse than North Dakota State according to Ken Pom. Between the clear statistical discrepancies and the fact that their coach is a big ole bitch you gotta ride the Bisons in this one.

The Pick: North Dakota State -5

(11) St. John’s vs. (11) Arizona State (-1.5) o/u 154.5

I love the Johnnies. I took a flier on them to win the tournament before the season started. They were the longest shot I took as far as futures go and it actually looked somewhat plausible for a while. Unfortunately, the Johnnies got cold at the end of the season and barely even squeezed into the tournament. Arizona State, on the other hand, has won 7 of their last 10 and have been profitable ATS all year. St. John’s hasn’t been great ATS away from home or as underdogs this year, which they are both here. Sad.

Key Matchup

The best matchup in this game is going to be on the sidelines. Bobby Hurley was known for being an absolute dog at Duke and is now one of the most psychotic coaches in college basketball. Then we have Chris Mullin who is still an old guard of the golden age of the Big East. He will never take shit from anybody and clearly is not afraid of beating the hell out of an opposing coach. If these two coaches end up in fist to cuffs before the game is over I would not be surprised. It could also come down to a key technical late in the game if one of them can’t keep their cool. I can’t wait for these two to go at it. I love Mullin, but I’m giving Hurley the edge because of his tournament experience.

The Pick: Arizona State -130