The NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 tips off on Saturday and continues on Sunday. March Madness has already been completely mad and hopefully for entertainment purposes that continues this weekend. Let’s take a look at where some of the early money has gone to sway some of the lines one way or the other.
Move for the favorite
Alabama -4.5 to -6 vs. UCLA
USC -1 to -2.5 vs. Oregon
Move for the underdog
Oregon State +7 to +6 vs. Loyola Chicago
Move for the over
Baylor-Villanova 138 to 140.5
Alabama-UCLA 143.5 to 145
Move for the under
Michigan-Florida State 146 to 144
Alabama opened as a -4.5 favorite but is now giving six points to UCLA. The public was surely impressed with the way the Crimson Tide blitzed Maryland in the second round. And it’s not like the Tide are coming from out of nowhere. They won the SEC regular-season title and also cut down the nets at the conference tournament. UCLA may be on fire right now, but the sample size of success is small. After all, the Bruins just barely got into the tournament as No. 11 seed in a play-in game. We agree with the public and like Alabama’s chances to win and cover.
Another Sunday game that has moved for the favorite is this Pac-12 showdown between USC and Oregon. Along with basically the entire conference, both the Trojans and the Ducks have been incredible in the Big Dance. During second-round action, USC answered Oregon’s upset of Iowa by utterly humiliating Kansas 85-51. In the lone regular-season meeting between the two teams, the Trojans took care of the Ducks 72-58. Led by Evan Mobley, USC is 5-1 in its last six games with a loss only to 23rd-ranked Colorado by just two points.
The total for this Saturday showdown between Baylor and Villanova opened at 138 but has since ballooned to 140.5. Bettors have surely taken note of the offensive performances displayed by each team so far in the NCAA Tournament. Baylor is averaging 77.5 ppg through two rounds (and would have averaged even more if both games weren’t absolute blowouts), while Villanova pinned 84 points on North Texas in round two after scoring 73 against Winthrop in its opener. Although the Wildcats are without Collin Gillespie, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl is pouring in 22.0 ppg over the past three outings.
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