IT’SSSSSSSS TIMEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!

The Round of 64 is here! We started off 2-0 on the first night of the First Four and fingers crossed the second night will keep the dream alive for us. But the best four-day run of the sports season starts now.

Road to 67-0: 4-0 (100%)

Best Bets: 0-0 (0%)

The way I am going to do this for the first two rounds is to do short write-ups for my best bets and then give the full card at the end. Once we get to the Sweet 16 I will be writing up every single game. So without further ado… here we go.

Thursday

Best Bets

1.5u Oral Roberts (+7.5) vs. Duke– I love Oral. It’s always tempting to fade Duke but I think this is a really good spot. They are going to be over-hyped after winning the ACC Tournament but I think that conference is so bad that the hype is not deserved. I also think Max Abmas and these Oral Roberts players have the experience that they will not be scared about this occasion. Give me the points and hopefully Oral gets the win.

1.5u Furman (+5.5) vs. UVA– Another ACC fade! UVA is always a good fade as a favorite in March as UMBC will tell you. I like this Furman team and I think they can contain UVA without Vander Plas. It should be low scoring and that will allow Furman to hang inside this number.

2u Houston (-19) vs. N. Kentucky– Houston is my favorite bet of this round. They are being slightly overlooked because they are not on national TV every night and since Sasser is out. But I think they are built to dominate bad teams and they should really dominate this team in particular. Northern Kentucky is awful on the glass and Houston should get second-shot opportunities all day.

Full Card

1u Arkansas/Arizona MLP (-118)– I trust Muss in March and I think they will emerge victorious here but with the way this game could go I would rather remove points from the equation and just need the win. Talent prevails here.

1u WVU (-2) vs. Maryland- Huggins is always fun to back. I trust him more than almost anyone. Eat Shit Pitt.

1u Utah State (-2) vs. Mizzou- Utah State is a fun team to watch. I think they will be able to pick up the win here and are an undervalued team in this tournament. Also, almost no one in this tournament is traveling further than Missouri for their first-round game which is always tough.

1u Howard 1H (+12.5) vs. Kansas- Howard has some dudes and I think they will be able to hang around early. The talent and experience might prevail late which is why I am taking the 1H number.

0.5u o155.5 TAMCC vs. Bama- I think the number is about right here so I am nibbling at the over. Alabama can obviously score in heaps and could get close to 100 themselves. I also think TAMCC should be able to hit shots as they are a really solid 3-point shooting team.

1u SDSU/Creighton MLP (+119)– Charleston is the trendiest upset of this tournament but I don’t believe the hype. Their strength of schedule was an absolute joke and SDSU is the best team in the MW by a decent margin. I also like this Creighton team a lot and think that they could go on a real run starting with a W here.

1u Auburn (-1) vs. Iowa- This game could go either way but I just want to sell McCaffery in March. I don’t trust this Iowa team at all and I think Auburn will squeak by.

1u Texas (-13.5), 1u Texas 1H (-7) vs. Colgate- I think Texas rolls here. I have them going to the Final Four and I think they set the tone with a big win against Colgate.

1u Boise State (+2) vs. NW- NW was built well for Big Ten play but I don’t trust them in the tournament. I am asking for it betting on a Mountain West team but I do think Boise State will leave this game with a W.

0.5u ULL (+11) vs. Tennessee- Tennessee will have a tough time without Zeigler in this tournament. I think ULL will stick with them but I’m worried the Vawls could pull away late so I’m taking it small.

0.5u PSU (+3.5) vs. TAMU- Penn State will win this game if their shooters are hot. Unfortunately, that’s a tough thing to rely on so I am taking this small as well.

0.5u UCLA (-17.5) vs. UNCA- UCLA should roll here. No Jaylen Clark makes it tough to believe in them to go far but for this game, their experience and talent should be enough to cover.

1u Houston 1H (-11.5) vs. N. Kentucky- It’s my favorite play already so I’m adding some 1H action.

Friday

Best Bets

1.5u Pitt (+4) vs. Iowa State- Pitt holding up against Mississippi State when they had the shooting night of their lives was really impressive. A team that wins a play-in game has won another game 10/11 years since they started the First Four. I also wanted to fade Iowa State anyways so basically everything has fallen into place to back Pitt here.

1.5u Montana State (+8.5) vs. Kansas State- I think this is a good matchup for Montana State. If K State can survive this game I think they could actually make a run in this region but I think this thing will stay close. Montana State is also a solid 12-7 ATS away from home this season.

Full Card

1u Drake +3.5, 1u Drake ML (+150) vs. Miami- I love this game. I think Miami is overrated (everyone in the ACC is) and this Drake team is seriously dangerous with DeVries.

1u USC +1.5 vs. Michigan State- Izzo is washed. Andy Enfield is just as March as Izzo is.

1u UCSB +11.5 vs. Baylor- Baylor is a team that I want to fade in this tournament. I think they have too many holes, especially defensively, and they can get exposed here.

1u Saint Marys/UConn MLP (-109)– I like UConn a lot in this tournament but I’m scared to lay against Pitino so I’m throwing them in this MLP along with Saint Marys who I also like to win a close one.

1u Vermont (+10.5) vs. Marquette- Marquette might have a bit of a hangover after the Big East tournament and Vermont has the players with experience to keep this thing close. Marquette ultimately wins and goes on a run but not after a real test here.

1u Kentucky (-4) vs. Providence- I think Kentucky could make some noise in this tournament. Providence is a team I wanted to fade going into the tournament and I think Kentucky will just out-talent them.

1u Grand Canyon (+16) vs. Gonzaga- This is just a vibes pick. Go Lopes.

1u Memphis (-2) vs. FAU- Memphis is a scary team. This is also a scary pick for the bracket because I think the winner of this game could give Purdue a real test and then make a run through their region. However, if you pick the wrong winner of this game you are screwed. But I am hitching my wagon to Memphis and hoping for the best.

0.5u Indiana (-4) vs. Kent State- This one is scary. I really like Indiana in this tournament IF they can survive this game. I’m hoping that the amount of Kent State hype actually works against them and then Indiana can go. TJD is the best player on the floor here and hopefully, he can control things.

1u Creighton 1H (-2.5) vs. NC State- I am playing some Creighton 1H. I played them in the MLP with SDSU because I think the backdoor possibility will be heavy at that number but I do think they can take a comfortable lead into the half.

0.5u TCU (-5.5) vs. ASU- ASU got us a winner in the First Four but I love this TCU team. Miles will take care of business and TCU will move on.

0.5u Purdue (-23) vs. FDU- FDU is way too overhyped after last night. Purdue should roll them. They have no physical way to stop Edey and he should have a triple-double with points, rebounds, and blocks.

Futures

I’m not going to go too much into futures because I feel like people will end up picking who they pick but for clarity… my national champion is Alabama but I don’t think it’s worth the squeeze to bet their future because the number is so low. I have a 10/1 preseason future on Houston but their number is also now too low. So my other current futures that I would still buy at their price are UConn 15/1, Creighton 30/1, TCU 35/1, Indiana 33/1, and Kansas State 40/1. I also have a St. Mary’s to make the Final Four 45/1 and Marquette to make the Final Four 8/1 from mid-season. I would still take Marquette at the current number.