An NCAA Tournament champion will be crowned before Aaron Rodgers signs a contract.
Probably a Wimbledon winner, too.
All odds are provided by BetMGM Sportsbook.
Arkansas (+7.5) over St. John’s
The Red Storm overwhelm opponents with their speed, strength and relentlessness. The Hogs are the rare team with the size, talent and athleticism to fight back, featuring a pair of five-star guards (Boogie Fland, D.J. Wagner) and a starter with Final Four experience (Johnell Davis). Arkansas has beaten five tournament teams in the past month and lost to strong title contenders (Auburn, Florida, Alabama) by an average of 6.3 points.
Arkansas’ defense is the best that St. John’s has seen this season. The Red Storm could hit trouble if they settle for 37 3-pointers again or believe they’ll shoot nearly 38 percent from deep again. Pitino wins the war. Calipari covers.
Texas A&M (-2.5) over Michigan
Three of the past four Big Ten Tournament winners failed to advance past the first weekend. The Wolverines nearly joined them in a nail-biter against San Diego. The Aggies will finish the job, with a top-10 defense and the best offensive rebounders in the nation, ranking third in extra scoring chances per game (6.8). Michigan will offer more chances, ranked among the most turnover-prone teams in the country.
Tennessee (-4.5) over UCLA
The Bruins have won back-to-back games once in the past six weeks. The Vols have won back-to-back games in each of the past two tournaments. The Bruins excel at forcing turnovers, but Tennessee takes care of the ball, led by First Team All-SEC guard Zakai Zeigler, who has 43 assists and eight turnovers in his past five tournament games. The Vols are the favorite in any rock fight.
Gonzaga (+5.5) over Houston
Last year, the top-seeded Cougars saw All-American Jamal Shead go down in their Sweet 16 loss. This year, the 1 seed plays its second-round game against a top-10 team, posing as an 8 seed. It has the feel of 2014, when undefeated Wichita State drew under-seeded Kentucky — and the highest-rated recruiting class of all time — and fell in a second-round classic.
The Zags have the balance and experience to play spoiler, looking for their 10th straight Sweet 16, with the nation’s second-highest scoring offense, the fifth-fewest turnovers per possession, a defense limiting opponents to 41 percent shooting, top-20 rebounding and the steady hand of senior point guard Ryan Nembhard, who leads the nation in assists (9.8). Gonzaga suffered three losses in overtime this season. The other five came by an average of 4.8 points.
Betting on College Basketball?
Creighton (+9.5) over Auburn
The Tigers have lost three of their past five games, failing to cover any spread. Even if Auburn wasn’t stumbling, Creighton would still cause problems. In a de facto road win over Louisville, the Bluejays had their highest-scoring effort since the second game of the season, shooting 57 percent from the field against a top-30 defense. The hot hands are always in play, with Creighton boasting the nation’s best 2-point field goal percentage.
On the other end, the Bluejays allow nothing easy, committing the fewest fouls in the nation and ranking 16th in 2-point field goal percentage allowed, anchored by four-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Kalkbrenner. Under Greg McDermott, Creighton has reached the second week of the tournament in three of the past four years. But even in its 2022 Round of 32 loss to eventual champion Kansas, the Bluejays held the ball, trailing by one in the final minute.
This season: 15-17
2011-24 record: 378-340-12
