subject: March Madness Betting: Southeast Bracket Surprises [print this page] March Madness Betting: Southeast Bracket Surprises
March Madness Betting: Southeast Bracket Surprises
The southeast can be one of the most volatile regions in the NCAA tournament, at least on paper. Avoiding this region should be a must if you are looking for locks and stone-cold specials.
(5) Kansas State vs. (12) Utah State
Here's the only betting statistic you will need for this game: Utah State, though a regular tournament team that is under coach Stew Morrill, failed to win any NCAA tournament game since 2001, when it defeated Ohio State in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Utah State lost in 2003. They also lost in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010. It may be hard to trust Utah State with that 12-seed upset pick over a 5 seed. Safely go with Kansas State because they have guard Jacob Pullen, who has the power and will to take over at least one game in the NCAA tournament. Kansas State is the choice in this particularMarch Madness betting 5-12 seed matchup.
March Madness betting upset special: (4) Wisconsin vs. (13) Belmont
If you ever wanted to take an upset, this is it. Wisconsin, as a No. 4 seed last year in the NCAA tournament, trailed Wofford until late in the game before barely surviving, 53-49. This year, the Badgers are once again seeded fourth. And this time around, they're probably even more vulnerable to a shocker. Coach Bo Ryan's Badgers didn't exactly play it well in March. They just endured a close but embarrassing 36-33 loss to Penn State in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament, a shocking result that was the byproduct of a great deal of panic. Wisconsin's star point guard, Jordan Taylor, got a lot of shots in and was very much willing to share the ball with teammates. Wisconsin is very dominant in its home court games (Badgers have lost only 11 times at the Kohl Center since the building opened in 2001) that it wavers when situated in a neutral-court setting. Belmont is a fabulous small-conference team that won its conference tournament championship game (in the Atlantic Sun Conference) by 41 points. The Bruins almost took down Duke in the 2008 NCAA tournament. They will give the knockout punch to Wisconsin. At the very least, this game will go down to the wire, even if Wisconsin finds a way to pull out a victory in the final minutes.
(1) Pittsburgh vs. (16) UNC Asheville
Don't waste your time mulling over this choice. Pittsburgh will shoot up at least 20 points and likely more than that. UNC-Asheville had to win a play-in game in overtime on Tuesday and then fly to Washington, D.C., to play a number one seed. That's not the secret to victory.
(8) Butler vs. (9) Old Dominion
The calculus for sports betting gurus in this game is summed up in one simple equation: If this game is going to be decided on the perimeter, Butler has the advantage with Shelvin Mach and Ronald Nored, two veterans of the Bulldogs' run to the national championship game last season, still on their team. That's where the bread and butter of Butler's playmaking and scoring ability lie. On the other hand, if this game is decided within eight feet of the basket, which belongs to the interior players who traffic in the low post, Old Dominion will have the edge. Matt Howard is a fine post-up player for Butler, but Frank Hassell of Old Dominion is better. Hassel's hook shot and overall low-post game exceeds anything and everything Howard can throw at him. Since the pace of this tilt is likely to be slow, Old Dominion should be able to give the ball to Hassell on a regular basis. The Monarchs are big and long near the rim, and therefore they should get a majority of the rebounds, especially down the stretch. Old Dominion deserves the nod in what should be a fascinating match up of highly credentialed mid-major programs.
(6) St. John's vs. (11) Gonzaga
To put it simply, St. John's has lost its starting senior guard, D.J. Kennedy, for this entire tournament due to an injury suffered last week in the Big East Conference Tournament against Syracuse. That fact, plus the location of this game in Denver, will give Gonzaga a pair of underserved but genuine breaks. The best choice here is Gonzaga because of the unfortunate luck of SJU.
(2) BYU vs. (14) Wofford
This is a great opportunity once again for an upset. BYU will never be the same without center Brandon Davies. Wofford can compete on the glass and the Terriers from the Southern Conference run great half court sets at the offensive end of the floor. BYU should be favored, but Wofford should definitely keep the game very close and will have a very legitimate chance to steal this one. Take Wofford with another upset in a Southeast Region bracket that promises chaos.
(7) UCLA vs. (10) Michigan State
Michigan State is a hugely underachieving team, but UCLA looked absolutely awful in its Pac-10 Tournament quarterfinal loss to Oregon, a 76-59 blowout that felt like a 25-point game. Michigan State may not go very far in this tournament, but it should be able to win in round one.
(3) Florida vs. (15) UC Santa Barbara
It seems like a bad match to begin with but it's being played in Tampa, compelling the sons of Santa Barbara to fly across the country. Florida should get the upper hand because of the home court advantage.
