2021 NCAA March Madness Best Bets And Tournament Picks
The First Round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament brought us some of the most exciting college basketball in years. A couple of major upsets have already busted the majority of brackets. We can only hope that the Second Round will provide similar thrills. We’ll take a closer look at a couple of the most interesting matchups and suggest bets that provide the best value in the Round of 32. Let’s discuss the first 2021 NCAA March Madness Best Bets And Tournament Picks.
NCAA March Madness Best Bets: Syracuse vs West Virginia: Under 147
As for the first 2021 NCAA March Madness Best Bets And Tournament Picks, This is a matchup of two very good offensive teams, but we’re still taking the UNDER. Both teams have the ability to counter opponents’ most dangerous offensive weapons. West Virginia features a perimeter defense more than capable of stopping Syracuse’s three-point shooting. They can also match the Orange under the basket. The Syracuse defense is often overshadowed by their flashy attack, but it’s more than solid. They register plenty of blocks and steals and excel at forcing turnovers. We expect a tight game, eventually going to the wire. In addition, both teams have kept their First Round opponents to under 67 points.
Texas Tech vs Arkansas: Texas Tech -1 + OVER 140.5
Moving onto the next NCAA March Madness Best Bets, Texas Tech has recently shown a lot of improvement on the offensive side. As the season progressed they rose to No. 33 in KenPom’s offensive efficiency rating. Arkansas, on the other hand, likes to run and score in transition. Their pace is one of the fastest in the country. They’re also extremely trigger-happy from the 3-point line. Both teams feature scorers that can get hot in a second. This should be an open, back-and-forth battle with a slight advantage on the Texas Tech side due to their defensive prowess.
Florida vs Oral Roberts: Florida -8
The upset Oral Roberts pulled against Ohio State is so far the best story of the tournament. Florida needed the overtime to clinch the win against Virginia Tech. However, the talent is on the Gators’ side and they will take the Golden Eagles seriously after what happened on Friday. The key for Florida is stopping Max Abmas and they have just the man for the job in Tre Mann. The Gators are an elite shooting team and likely won’t repeat Ohio State’s abysmal 22% from the deep. With the clear advantage on the boards and solid FT shooting, they shouldn’t allow another upset.
Ohio vs Creighton: UNDER 149
Both teams first-round matchups ended with under 125 points total. Ohio managed to keep the defending champions, Virginia, without a field goal for more than 10 minutes in the second half. They held the Cavaliers to only 35% shooting. In their matchup, Creighton kept UCSB, who averages 73.4 ppg, to only 62 points. In addition, they themselves struggled on the offense. We feel that the total is set to high and the game should easily go UNDER.
LSU vs Michigan: UNDER 149
Another UNDER selection and for a good reason. The Tigers came to the tournament as a fast-paced offensive juggernaut. Still, judging by their game against St. Bonaventure, they’ve adjusted their approach a bit. We saw them playing a deliberate offense, often milking the shot clock. Their Monday opponent, Michigan boasts one of the top defenses in the country, especially on the inside. They’ve allowed only 65 points per game this season. Besides, the Wolverines are coming into the game without their best scorer, Isaiah Livers.
Colorado vs Florida State: OVER 139
Colorado had a fantastic shooting night in the opening round. They dropped 96 on Georgetown, shooting 61% from the field. However, they also allowed 73 points. Florida State, on the other hand, was involved in a low-scoring affair against UNC Greensboro. But, we shouldn’t put too much stake into that game, as the Seminoles can hardly repeat such a poor shooting night. They should do much better the 0-9 from the deep. They’re an uber-athletic team with points coming from everywhere. Florida State averaged 78.3 points per game this season and we can expect them to bounce back and get close to that number again on Monday.
