March Madness Straight-Up Picks & Lines for Sweet 16 Betting Games

Thursday night will see the end of the break in action in March Madness, with the Sweet 16 set to begin. We will have 4 games on Thursday night followed by another 4 on Friday, at which point we will start breaking down Elite 8 games and how things might go from there. It has been, to this point, a tournament full of surprises, with 2 of the 4 #1 seeds already sent packing. Will we see the other 2 survive or are we going to get a surprise matchup in the National Championship Game? Only time will tell, but for now, our focus is on this round and the next set of games. With that in mind, let’s take a look at our SU picks for the Sweet 16.

NCAA Sweet 16 Betting SU Picks | March Madness Lines

Michigan State Spartans over Kansas State Wildcats

When: Thursday, 6:30 PM ET
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York
TV: TBS

We are trying to stick with games that the bookies have as close, so that we can get some better March Madness odds. That does imply some risk, though, as these really are matchups that could go either way. The Spartans are in as slight favorites for this one and have won their tournament games as both an underdog and a favorite. It is the very same story for the Wildcats in their run, but there is one thing that jumps out at me when looking at the trends, which is what the Spartans have done when in as the favorite. They are an impressive 13-1 SU in the last 14 games that they started as favorite, which gives them the edge here.

NCAA Basketball Pick: Spartans | Bet Michigan State vs Wildcats to Win Today
MyBookie Betting Lines for the Game

Gonzaga Bulldogs over UCLA Bruins

When: Thursday, 9:45 PM ET
Where: T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, NV
TV: CBS

Another one that is almost too close to call, with the Bruins currently in as a 1-point favorite. In this case, we are going with the slight underdog to win. We have always said that teams who come into the tournament on a roll tend to use that momentum to take them on a deep run. That is where the Bulldogs are right now, as they closed out the regular season with 9 straight wins, and after winning in the opening 2 rounds here, they are now on an 11-game winning run. If you need a little bit more convincing to play Gonzaga, how about the fact that they have won 13 in a row versus teams from the PAC-12. I do think it will be close, but I like the Bulldogs to go to the Elite 8.

NCAA Basketball Pick: Bulldogs | Bet Gonzaga vs Bruins to Win Today
MyBookie Betting Lines for the Game

Xavier Musketeers over Texas Longhorns

When: Friday, 9:45 PM ET
Where: T-Mobile Center – Kansas City, MO
TV: CBS

Once again, we are going the way of the underdog in out final pick for the Sweet 16. The Musketeers had to fight hard to get through their opening round against Kennesaw State, but they were very good in Round 2, winning and covering the spread against Pittsburgh. This will be their toughest game yet, but there are many reasons why they could get past the higher seeded Texas Longhorns. The fact of the matter is that this team seems to save their best ball for March, where they are now 11-1 SU in their last 12. They also seem to like Friday games, going 13-3 SU in their last 16. This has the makings of one of the best games of this round and I think it will be Xavier to move on.

NCAA Basketball Pick: Xavier | Bet Xavier vs Texas to Win Today
MyBookie Betting Lines for the Game