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Horse Racing NCAA March Madness Best Bets: Thursday March 17th
March Madness is finally here, and our college basketball expert EJ Garr has found 4 of his best value picks for the opening round. He’s backing 2 slight favourites and 1 heavy underdog in this round, along with a nice Over in the San Francisco vs Murray State game. Stay tuned for more NCAA March Madness tips, along with more basketball news on bettingexpert.
March Madness Best Bets Thursday, March 17th
- South Dakota State vs Providence: Providence -2 at 1.91
- Richmond vs Iowa: Richmond +10.5 at 1.90
- New Mexico vs UConn: UConn -3.5 Halftime at 1.90
- San Francisco vs Murray State: Over 137 at 1.93
Odds as at 11 am March 15th 2022. Odds may now differ.
South Dakota State vs Providence Best Bet
Thu, March 17 16:40 (UK time)
The Jackrabbits have not lost a game since December 15 of last year, as they will take a 21-game win streak into the tournament playing as well as any program in the nation. Of course, the greater concern for bettors out there is the level of competition the Jackrabbits faced coming out of the Summit League.
The Providence Friars won the Big East regular-season title but flopped big time in the conference tournament losing to Creighton in the early rounds. Having dropped to 13th in the country in the national rankings as a result of that, the Friars are being given no respect from the so-called expert pundits in the U.S. The likes of Joe Lunardi at ESPN have socially come out and said that he expects the Jackrabbits to be one of the surprise programs to pull an upset in the tournament.
Joe Lunardi is among the experts that are picking which teams may land where (Bracketology), but he is no handicapper and he is one of many calling for the Jackrabbits publicly to win this game. You should listen to me now, and listen to me good. The Friars will rebound from that atrocious loss to the Blue Jays in the Big East Conference Tournament with a comfortable win over the Jackrabbits to start their NCAA Tournament. Don’t think for a second that the Jackrabbits will be your bracket buster team that makes a run in the tournament this year.
- Selection: Providence -2
- Best Odds: 1.89 (Unibet)
- Stakes: 5/10
More South Dakota vs Providence tips
Richmond vs Iowa Best Bet
Thu, March 17, 19:10 (UK time)
The Richmond Spiders may not have put up their best season and they may not be on your radar to go far in your bracket either. Iowa’s offence went crazy during the Big Ten Conference Tournament and the line setters are expecting that to carry over to the NCAA Tournament. We are seeing a total in the 150s for this affair but that is not where you will be looking to cash a ticket.
The Spiders are one of the most experienced programs in the entire nation and they really should have found a few more wins over the course of the season. Having 12 losses and coming out of the Atlantic 10 Conference will not lift the expectations of the Spider’s program but this disrespectful handicap line will work in our favour. The total may be high, but the Richmond Spiders are getting +10.5 points in a game they have to win to keep their season going. I simply do not see this as a blowout opportunity for Iowa at a neutral site where neither team has any familiarity with the court conditions.
The Hawkeyes are 1 of 9 Big Ten programs that advanced to the big tournament which is far and away the most in the nation. However, we saw both the #1 and #2 seeds of the conference tournament go down on opening weekend for the first time in the history of the Big 10 post-season. The Hawkeye’s offence puts up 83.3 PPG which ranks them 5th in the nation in scoring and they set a Big 10 record to kick off the conference tournament against Northwestern.
Iowa tossed home a record 112 points and buried a record 19 3-point shots in the win over the Wildcats, and then Iowa just went on to smash up everyone in sight as they took the Big Ten Tournament trophy. That is called momentum and the Hawkeyes have it!
Regardless, I still expect this to be a closely contested game with two teams looking to show why they belong in the big show.
- Selection: Richmond +10.5
- Best odds: 1.90 (Bet365)
- Stakes: 4 out of 10
New Mexico State vs UConn Best Bet
Thu, March 17, 22:50 (UK time)
New Mexico State and UConn have been playing close game after close game all season long. As you peruse the results of both programs throughout the year you can constantly see how close each game eventually becomes.
This is another situation where the unfamiliarity with smaller schools can create some confusion as many folks see this UConn team as one that will get through this weekend with a pair of easy wins. However, this will not just be another easy win against a foe they are not used to seeing because if defence means anything this Aggies team can play it and play it well.
The Aggies defence is ranked 20th in the nation holding opponents to a low 39.2% shooting from the floor this season. The WAC may not have provided many big-game opportunities for the Aggies to show their worth, although bouts with Davidson and Washington State did give them enough experience to navigate their way to the WAC tournament title.
UConn just seems to play to their opponent’s level no matter what the competition may present. Considering both teams will try to defend and advance, I expect a close game that will come down to the final minutes of the game with free throws being a big factor in who comes out on top although the best bet to make might come from the first-half lines. I expect UConn to navigate their way to a 5-point first-half lead and since Bet365 is offering -3.5 at 1.91 it is the best bet to make in this spot.
- Selection: UConn -3.5 Halftime
- Best odds: 1.90 (bet365)
- Stakes: 4 out of 10
More New Mexico State vs UConn tips
San Francisco vs Murray State Best Bet
Fri , March 18, 01:40 (UK time)
This game tips off at 9:40 p.m US EDT which will officially make this an early morning game in the UK. However, this might be among the best games you might miss as the Dons and Racers square off in the first round of the tourney.
The line setters favour the Racers and with only 2 losses to show for the entire season we understand why that is. Many bettors will judge the level of competition that both programs faced throughout the year and Murray State might not even be familiar to those who only want to fill out a bracket or two when Match Madness arrives.
Make no mistake that these two offences will produce enough points to shoot us over the total so that is where the best bet from this game will come. The Dons offence ranks 39th in the nation scoring 77.3 PPG and the Racers produce 79.3 PPG which puts them in the 23rd position of the rankings. There is no need to concern yourself with Quad 1 and Quad 2 issues since the two programs face limited opponents from the power-5 conferences.
Auburn does account for one of the two Murray State defeats and that is a rather formidable opponent, to say the least. San Francisco did well against every opponent not named Gonzaga or St. Mary’s in their West Coast Conference action. Regardless, these two should provide enough fireworks to cash our ticket on the total
- Selection: Over 137 Points
- Best Odds 1.93 (Unibet)
- Stakes: 4 out of 10
More San Francisco vs Murray State tips
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