NCAA Basketball March Madness Odds: Arizona State Vs TCU Betting Analysis

We are only a day into March Madness and we are already seeing some wild results, perhaps none bigger than the Furman Paladins getting past Virginia with the buzzer beater. That will almost certainly not be the last of the upsets, but figuring out where the next one will come from is the difficult part of handicapping the tournament. The final game of the first round goes on Friday night when Arizona State and TCU meet up for a shot at moving on and keeping their National Championship hopes alive. This is actually the second game for the Sun Devils after getting through the First Four, but things are about to get a little tougher for them, as they come into this one as a 5 ½ point underdog. The point total for this one is set at 141 ½. Let’s take a look at the NCAA basketball odds, so you can prepare your betting strategies for this second round game.

#11 Arizona State Sun Devils Vs #6 TCU Horned Frogs Game Info

When: Friday, March 17 at 10:05 PM EST
Where: Ball Arena, Denver
TV: truTV

Why bet on the Arizona State Sun Devils

It’s never ideal to have to play an extra game to get into the tournament, but it’s better than not getting a shot at all. The Arizona State Sun Devils certainly took full advantage of their opportunity, blowing out Nevada by a score of 98-73 to get into the first round. They come into this one with some stats that might make them look like a good bet, starting with going 6-2 SU in their last 8 Friday games played away from home. That said, they are 0-5 ATS in games played on a Friday and just 6-12 ATS in their last 18 games overall. There is a positive to be found in their spread history, though, as they are 11-5 ATS in their last 16 games that they started as an underdog. In games versus teams from the Big 12 Conference, the Sun Devils have seen 4 of their last 5 go OVER the point total.

Why bet on the TCU Horned Frogs

The TCU Horned Frogs ended the season on a poor run of form, going just 5-8 through their last 13 games. In fairness, they did have a rather brutal schedule, but their inability to get the win against ranked teams is something that has to be seen as more than a little concerning heading into the tournament. On the face of it, this looks like a game that they should win, but when you have a run of form like the Frogs have been on, it can be tough to get out of that rut. If there is a something that comes across as a very convincing argument to play the Horned Frogs, it’s that they are 14-4 SU when playing as the favorite. They have not been so great against the spread, going 1-5 ATS in their last 6 Friday games, and just 3-8 ATS in their last 11 overall. In games versus the PAC-12, the OVER has hit in 5 of their last 6.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

While the Horned Frogs have not been in the best form, I still think they are good enough to get past the Sun Devils. I also think they might just cover, but the wager that really jumps out with this one is the OVER. Arizona State Sun Devils 71 TCU Horned Frogs 78

I have read enough, I need to place my bet now. What to do?