Ricky Dimon
NBA
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Good morning, Pickswise Nation. Half of the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four will be set by the end of the night, with Gonzaga, UConn, Kansas State and Florida Atlantic battling for 2 spots. Don’t forget that the weekend is also continuing with plenty of NBA, NHL, XFL, UFC and soccer action. It’s another big day in the world of sports, so let’s get right to it and make your next bet better with Wise n’ Shine!
About Last Night
Elite Eight field is set…without any #1 seeds
And then there were 8…. San Diego State, Miami, Creighton and Texas rounded out the Elite Eight field on Friday. There are zero #1 seeds still alive, as San Diego State ended Alabama’s hopes and Miami finished off Houston.
NBA parlay is a +596 winner
The Pickswise NBA experts cashed their +596 parlay on Friday, as the Celtics, Raptors and Bucks all covered easily as big favorites. We went 7-3 overall on our ATS picks.
Calm before the storm in the NHL
Prior to Saturday’s behemoth of a hockey slate, only 3 NHL games took place on Friday. Buffalo, Columbus and Colorado were winners.
All of college basketball’s biggest games are available to bet with BetMGM, the premier destination for online sports betting. New customers can earn themselves a $1,000 deposit bonus by signing up right now! Click here to lock in this great sign-up offer.
Today’s Slate
Who will be the first into Final Four?
We already know that zero #1 seeds will be participating in this year’s Final Four. Beyond that there is a whole host of uncertainty. The picture will become a lot clearer with 2 teams punching tickets to Houston on Saturday. It’s Florida Atlantic vs Kansas State and UConn vs Gonzaga. We have college basketball predictions for every game all tournament long.
NBA action continues on a packed Saturday slate
Today’s NBA lineup features the Nets, Heat, Bucks, Nuggets, 76ers, Suns and Clippers. An NBA TV showdown pits Milwaukee against Denver in a potential finals preview. Read today’s NBA picks.
Almost every NHL team is taking the ice
Only 2 of 32 NHL teams are not on today’s schedule (Colorado and Arizona are in the middle of a home-and-home double-header taking place on Friday and Sunday) Saturday’s smorgasbord of riches begins with Boston hosting Tampa Bay at 1:00 pm ET on NHL Network and wraps up with St. Louis visiting Anaheim at 10:30 pm ET on ESPN+. Check out all of our hockey coverage on the NHL page.
Best Bet of the Day
NCAAB: UConn Huskies -2 (-110) over Gonzaga Bulldogs
8:30 pm ET, TBS
UConn took care of Arkansas in convincing fashion in the Sweet 16, cruising 88-65. The Huskies scored 1.26 points per possession, made almost 65% of their 2-point attempts, made 45% of their 3-point attempts and out-rebounded the Razorbacks in their win — leading by as many as 29 points while Arkansas never held a lead. Unlike UConn, Gonzaga endured another thriller against UCLA. The Zags trailed by a lot, led by a lot and then survived a frantic finish. It wouldn’t be hard for them to snap back in gear mentally, but physically could be a problem especially if this one develops as a barnburner. Drew Timme went wild against UCLA, but UConn is much more equipped than the Adem Bona-less Bruins to slow him down. The Huskies will counter Timme with Adama Sanogo and Donovan Clingan, both of whom should be able to limit him in the paint and keep him off the boards to an extent. We’re going with the Huskies ATS. Read our full UConn vs Gonzaga predictions.
You can bet on our NCAA Tournament predictions at DraftKings Sportsbook, which has thousands of betting options available and a great new customer offer where you can bet $5 and get $200 in bonus bets instantly! Click here to sign up for DraftKings.
Must-read
Head over to our March Madness hub for all our NCAA Tournament picks, parlays and analysis, including our best bets for Saturday.
Away from the college hardwood, you should also check out our soccer picks — which include every MLS game on Saturday. We also have a +1062 XFL mega parlay to go along with tons of baseball futures on the MLB page. That includes our World Series best bet and Cy Young Award picks.
Read all of our great sports analysis as it arrives throughout the day on the Analysis tab.
Stat of the Day
Orlando Guardians quarterback Quinten Dormady took over as the starter in the last game and promptly averaged more than 10 yards per attempt. He now faces a Seattle Sea Dragons squad that is favored by 9.5 points and has not won by more than 9 this entire XFL season.
Quote of the Day
“I love him. I love his game. I love everything about him. I love his leadership, I love his heart; his play-making ability. He makes everyone on the court better. He’s a winner.”
— Former Michigan State guard Mateen Cleaves on Kansas State guard Markquis Nowell after watching Nowell lead the Wildcats past the Spartans 98-93 in overtime during Elite Eight action, as Nowell set an NCAA Tournament record with 19 assists
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Pickswise is the home of free sports picks, news and best bets. Check out our expert NFL Picks, NBA Picks, Soccer Picks and NHL Picks pages for our latest game picks.
