Every March, billions of dollars are wagered and millions of brackets are made for the NCAA Basketball Tournament. The single-elimination, 68-team tournament contains four regions of 16 collegiate teams each (plus four play-in games).
The brackets for the March 2021 NCAA Tournament have been released, as the March Madness tournament in 2020 was canceled due to COVID-19. Virginia won the 2019 championship, completing a stunning comeback from 2018, when it was the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed. We’re already looking forward to the next Big Dance, and from a gambling perspective, the best basketball betting sites will likely provide an abundance of markets. In addition to NBA betting, this is a crucial date for any basketball bettor.
Guidelines Every Gambler Should Read
How to Gamble as a Rookie NCAA March Madness Final Four Teams Greatest NCAA Final Four Comebacks in History
Where Can I Bet on the March Madness Tournament?
Since 2000, the Greatest March Madness Spread-Based Upsets
Five Top Casinos for Watching NCAA Basketball March Madness
Recent Events Influencing March Madness Odds
2020 Virginia Co-Favorites to Win
From 2009, the top 12 teams have reached the Sweet 16 for the first time.
AGA Forecasts $8.5 Billion in NCAA Tournament Betting
The NCAA is Examining a Regulation Modification with Consequences for Wagering
Wagering on the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship
This year, with the introduction of sports betting outside of Las Vegas, the March Madness betting industry is anticipated to attract more wagers than ever before.
Every March, billions of dollars are wagered and millions of brackets are made for the NCAA Basketball Tournament. The 68-team, single-elimination competition offers a staggering number of betting options nearly every day of the tournament’s weeks-long duration.
In addition to the brackets that are produced each year and destroyed before the first Friday of the tournament, hundreds of wagers are placed. When a No. 1 seed encounters a No. 16 seed in the first round, point spreads can go as high as 30 points. Over-under point total wagers are also utilized.
It is vital to examine the pace at which teams play, as there is a wide range of quick and slow-paced NCAA Tournament teams every year.
There are also larger wagers. If a team earned what is seen as a “easy” area and path to the Final Four, the team’s future odds to win the NCAA Tournament may shift substantially following Selection Sunday.
Additional prop bets include which player will win Most Valuable Player of the Final Four, which conference the champion will hail from, and which team or player will score the most points in a single game. Given its popularity, March Madness wagers can be placed on virtually anything.
Five Considerations When Betting on March Madness
If you’ve ever filled out a bracket, you know how unpredictable March Madness is. It is now incorrect to assert that a 16 seed has never beaten a 1 seed, as there is no rhyme, reason, or discernible pattern to speak of. That was always a safe bet. Till 2018.
We can conclude that investigating tiny schools pays off. The Dukes, Kentuckys, and North Carolinas will always be formidable opponents, but there is significant potential in minor conferences. Remember that these small school teams won their conference tournaments in order to qualify for the Tournament. They have tremendous momentum and, more often than not, a senior-heavy roster.
There are always upsets over the opening two days of the March Madness tournament. Usually, you can identify them with a little further investigation about a team’s true quality.
If you’re looking for Final Four choices, there’s a reason why the top seeds remain the top seeds. The higher the seed, the easier the prospective opponents and trip to the Final Four. Keep in mind that there is no reseeding. Teams are aware of their course after the bracket is published.
We would be negligent if we failed to mention the renowned 5 vs. 12 matchup. No. 12 seeds are often formidable mid-major programs, whereas No. 5 seeds are typically second-placed teams from large conferences. In addition, No. 5 seeds lack the “geographic protection” offered to the top four seeds, meaning they are frequently shipped to distant locations, making them more susceptible. Because of these factors, the No. 12 seed appears to be the Cinderella most likely to upset a bracket. If you require an underdog, consider the 12s.
Betting March Madness Prop Bets
With the 1985 expansion of the NCAA Tournament to 64 participants through 2018, 21 of the 34 national champions have been a No. 1 seed, including nine of the last twelve. Indeed, it can be tough to predict who of the four top seeds will win the championship, but the odds indicate that one of them will.
Unsurprisingly, the next closest seeds in this 34-year timeframe are No. 2 seeds (five times) and No. 3 seeds (three times) (four times). Hence, thirty of the last thirty-four national winners (88.2%) came from the top three seeds. It’s lovely to see Cinderellas get to the Sweet 16 or Elite 8, but if you’re looking for a champion, make sure they’re one of the top three seeds.
In the same vein, fourteen of the twenty-one winners of the Most Valuable Player award from 1998 to 2018 came from the No. 1 seed. March Madness is characterized by frequent upsets. In contrast, if we tear down the nets, the best of the best will ascend to the top.
How Does the NCAA Basketball Championship Work?
32 teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament by winning their respective conference championships, while the remaining 36 “at-large” teams are chosen by a 10-member NCAA selection committee comprised of athletic directors and conference commissioners.
The committee utilizes a variety of criteria to decide the 36 greatest non-champions in their respective conference tournament. The committee then arranges the teams 1-68 into four distinct 1-16 regions (plus the four play-in games).
On Selection Sunday in early March, after all conference tournaments have concluded, the bracket is revealed.
The regional semifinals and championships, also known as the Sweet 16 and Elite 8, are then held at four new venues. Each region’s champions compete in the Final Four at a new venue, with the final game contested two days later.
Six victories are required to cut down the nets in early April (seven if a team participates in the play-in game). No reseeding or consolation brackets are available.
Check out New Betting Sites for promotions and incentives.