2024 March Madness Odds: Sweet 16 UConn vs San Diego State Pick

 

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It’s West Coast vs. East Coast in the NCAA Tournament national championship game from Houston as No 5 San Diego State of the Mountain West faces No. 4 UConn of the Big East with a 9:20 p.m. ET tipoff from NRG Stadium and televised by CBS. The Huskies, looking for their fifth national title, are 7.5-point favorites on the NCAAB odds.

Last-Minute Preview Of The NCAA Championship Game: San Diego State vs. UConn

When: Saturday, April 3, at 9:20 PM ET
Where: NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
TV / Streaming: CBS, Paramount+

San Diego State (32-6) is the first-ever team from the Mountain West in the NCAA Tournament title game. The Aztecs beat No. 9 Florida Atlantic 72-71 in the Final Four on a Lamont Butler 17-foot buzzer-beater. SDSU trailed by as many as 14 in the second half and the only time it led in the second half was when the game was finished.

Butler’s shot came after San Diego State elected not to foul or use its final timeout after pulling within a point with 36 seconds to go. The Aztecs and coach Brian Dutcher were content to let Florida Atlantic play out the shot clock on its final possession and not foul to extend the game. After FAU took two timeouts of its own, Johnell Davis missed a runner in the lane and SDSU got the rebound. The Aztecs could have called timeout after getting the ball across halfcourt and drawn up a final play. But they wanted to play it out.

“I ran out of plays, so I decided not to take the timeout,” Dutcher said. “I said if we get the rebound, let’s get downhill, send all three bigs to the rim. Lamont got downhill, he made the play. I’m proud of him.”

SDSU star Matt Bradley made only 3 of 17 attempts in wins against Alabama and Creighton but came alive against FAU with a team-leading 21 points. It was Bradley’s first 20-point game since scoring 23 points against UNLV on New Year’s Eve.

San Diego State is giving up an even 60 points per game heading into Monday night while holding opponents to 35.9% shooting from the field and 21.6% from deep. The Aztecs will look to join UNLV in 1990 as the only current mid-major programs to win the national championship. SDSU has won 15 of its last 16 games (15-1) and 19 of its last 21 (19-2) with the two losses coming on the road against NCAA Tournament teams Nevada (14-2 at home) and Boise State (14-1 at home). The Aztecs are 7-0 this season in games decided by three or less points.

UConn (30-8), which won its last national title in 2014, had little trouble beating No. 5 Miami on Saturday, 72-59. Starting with three straight 3s — one jumper from Jordan Hawkins and two set shots from Adama Sanogo — UConn took a quick 9-0 lead and never trailed.

The semifinal victory was UConn’s closest win in five tournament games, and it became only the sixth team since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985 to reach the title game after winning its first five in the tournament by double digits. Four of the previous five teams won the championship (Michigan State in 2000, Duke in 2001, North Carolina in 2009, Villanova in 2018).

Since the NCAA tournament expanded to 64 teams, only 1996 Kentucky, 2009 North Carolina and 2016 Villanova have ever captured the national title with an average margin of victory of at least 20 points. UConn’s average NCAA tournament margin of victory thus far has been 20.6.

“When we’re playing harder than the other team, which is our calling card — going like plus-nine on the glass, playing elite defense and having a lot of answers on offense — there’s nowhere where we’re weak as a team,” coach Dan Hurley said after beating Miami. “We’re able to kind of body blow our opponent.”

UConn is 16-0 against non-Big East teams this season and has won all of those games by double digits, averaging a 24.7 margin in its favor. The Huskies are a perfect 4-0 in national championship games, winning in 1999, 2004, 2011 and 2014 and have won the most national title games without losing one. The Huskies beat the Aztecs in the Sweet 16 on their path to a national championship in 2011.

March Madness Pick

: San Diego State to cover

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The No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament hasn’t won it all since Louisville in 2013. Ironically, current No. 1 overall seed Alabama plays in Louisville on Friday in Sweet 16 action against No. 5 San Diego State with the Tide as solid favorites on the NCAAB odds.

Sweet 16: No. 5 San Diego State vs. No. 1 Alabama | 2023 NCAA Tournament Expert Analysis

How to Bet San Diego State vs. Alabama NCAA Basketball Odds & TV Info

When: Friday, 6:30 PM ET
Where: KFC Yum! Center, Louisville
TV: TBS
Stream: https://www.ncaa.com/march-madness-live
Radio: Tunein.com
Opening NCAAB Lines: Alabama -7.5 (total 137)
Last Meeting: The schools have never played. San Diego State played one SEC team like Alabama this year, losing 78-74 at a neutral site to Arkansas (also in the Sweet 16) on Nov. 23. The Tide were 2-0 vs. the Razorbacks. Bama didn’t play any Mountain West schools this year.

Why Bet on San Diego State?

Mountain West champion San Diego State (29-6) advanced with a 75-52 rout of No. 13 Furman last Saturday. The Aztecs held Furman to 32% shooting, including 23% from the three-point line, and Micah Parrish led four players in double figures with 16 points for SDSU. It managed a 41-24 rebounding edge and outscored the Paladins 40-16 in the paint.

The Aztecs also registered 18 second-chance points on 10 offensive rebounds. They held Furman to a season-low 32% shooting and 52 points. Furman finished 14-of-18 at the foul line, marking the first time in 21 games this season that the Paladins outscored their opponent at the line but failed to win.

Darrion Trammell added 13 points, Lamont Butler had 12 and leading scorer Matt Bradley finished with 10 for San Diego State, which is heading to its first Sweet 16 since 2004. The Aztecs enter having won 12 of its last 13 (12-1) and 16 of its last 18 (16-2), with its two losses coming on the road at Nevada (14-2 at home) and at Boise State (14-1 at home), both which earned NCAA Tournament bids.

The Aztecs shot 46.5 percent (53-of-114) in their first two games of the Dance and held their opponents to 32.1 percent (34-of-106) from the field. SDSU limited Charleston and Furman to just 22.0 percent (11-of-50) from the long range.

San Diego State is the first Mountain West Conference team to reach the Sweet 16 since Nevada in 2018. It’ll be the third regional semifinal appearance for the Aztecs and the seventh for the Mountain West overall.

SDSU has played against half of the current members of the Southeast Conference (7-of-14) and has a 3-10 record against SEC teams. Most recently, the Aztecs lost in overtime to Arkansas, 74-78, at the 2022 Maui Jim Maui Invitational as noted above. In its history, SDSU has played four games against the top ranked team in the country like Alabama, but has yet to break through with a victory.

Of the programs to reach the Sweet 16, San Diego State has traveled 4,482.7 miles (first and second Round & the Sweet 16), which is nearly 1,000 miles further than any other program to reach this point in the event (Princeton is second at 3,520.2 miles). Alabama will have traveled the shortest distance going only 475.6 miles to and from its first and second round games in Birmingham and now to Louisville.

Why Bet on Alabama?

The top-seeded Tide (31-5) haven’t been challenged yet in a 96-75 win over Texas A&M Corpus Christi in Round 1 and 73-51 over No. 8 Maryland in the Round of 32.

The Terrapins actually led for much of the first half and their defense stifled the high-scoring Crimson Tide (82.6 ppg entering the game), limiting them to just 28 first-half points and 38.5 percent shooting from the floor in the first 20 minutes. Alabama committed 11 turnovers and shot 38.2 percent from the floor for the game. Alabama then used a hot start to the second half and went on to outscore Maryland by 17 points, 45-28, to result in the final score.

The Tide were led by Jahvon Quinerly’s 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. Brandon Miller collected 19 points and seven boards while Charles Bediako added 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Since the start of the SEC Tournament (5 games), Bediako is averaging 10.4 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 1.0 apg and 3.4 bpg.

The 22-point victory matched the Tide’s second-largest NCAA Tournament win in program history. Coach Nate Oats also improved to 4-2 (.667) in six NCAA Tournament appearances at Alabama, including a pair of Sweet 16 showings.

Alabama is looking to advance to its second Elite Eight appearance with a victory. The only other occurrence came in 2004 the then-No. 8 seed Crimson Tide, with the help of current assistant coach and then guard Antoine Pettway, defeated No. 9 Southern Illinois, No. 1 Stanford and No. 5 Syracuse before falling to eventual national champion and second-seeded UConn in the regional final.

Bama has won a school-record 31 games and its newcomers have scored 2,243 of UA’s 2,963 points (75.7%) this season. That group is led by Miller, who became the first freshman in SEC history to win SEC Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Tournament MVP in the same season. Miller leads all freshmen in Division I in points per game (19.1).

Alabama is one of the fastest teams in the country, ranking fifth nationally with nearly 73 possessions per game. San Diego State is at the opposite end, ranking No. 263 with fewer than 66 possessions per game.

Expert Prediction

Alabama 73, San Diego State 68

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The Xavier Musketeers will look to sweep the season series against the Connecticut Huskies on Wednesday when they visit Gampel Pavilion. Both teams find themselves back on the winning track after landing victories over the weekend.

The Huskies destroyed Butler in Storrs while Xavier waited until the middle of the second to finally put away the Hoyas. These two teams faced off on New Year’s Eve when Xavier landed a double-digit victory at the Cintas Center.

Connecticut enters the game as a favorite (-9.5) on their home court despite losing five of their last seven games. Xavier recently had their eleven-game winning streak when they unexpectedly lost to DePaul, which is likely playing a part in this spread. The contest is scheduled for a 6:30 PM EST tip-off and will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1. With all that in mind, it’s time we take a closer look at both teams and how they arrive to this Xavier vs UConn matchup so you can bet on their NCAA Basketball Odds.

Game of the Day: #13 Xavier at #19 UConn College Basketball Betting Preview

Xavier Musketeers Overview

The Musketeers were bound to fall sooner or later but falling to DePaul was a shocking result, even on the road. The Musketeers are still a quality team away from home at 3-2 against the spread in true road games this season while also being 2-1 ATS in neutral site games. In true road games, the Xavier Musketeers are fourth best in the Big East, outperforming the number by an average of +1.2 points per game.

The Musketeers are one of the best teams in the conference against the total on the road, going over in three of their five games away from home and exceeding the number by +10.9 points per contest.

There are currently no injury concerns with the Musketeers, and it appears that the DePaul loss was just a hiccup. The frontcourt trio of Jack Nunge, Zach Freemantle, and Colby Jones recovered nicely in the game against Georgetown though Nunge struggled a bit from the floor. Point guard Souley Boum also recovered from a tough shooting performance against the Blue Demons with 10 points on 4-7 from the field against the Hoyas.

Connecticut Huskies Overview

The UConn Huskies looked like a national championship contender just a few short weeks ago. Despite no major injuries, they hit the skids and fell in five of six games. In their game against Butler over the weekend, the Huskies appeared to get their groove back as Adama Sanogo put an impressive 17-point, 14 rebounds double-double into the scorebook.

The next step in getting Connecticut back to where they want to be is getting Jordan Hawkins’ consistency back. The sophomore perimeter star is just 10-27 from the perimeter over his last four games and shooting under 35% from deep over his last seven. Hawkins has the talent to shoot over 40% from beyond the arc, and if he is able to regain that form, this team can get back to their dominating ways.

The Pick

Look for the Huskies to redeem themselves at home and get the victory straight up, but this Xavier frontcourt is good enough to cover this number on the road.

 

 

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There are a few different ways to approach March Madness when it comes time to bet on the tournament. There are some who will grab the low hanging fruit in the opening couple of rounds, playing the top seeds to win against the lesser lights, slowly but surely building their bankroll in the process. Then there are those who will actively look for upsets in an effort to land some big scores in the early going. Whatever method you play, it is still always fun to take in all the action as you try to make the tournament a success. Besides the obvious picks in Round 1, there is always the potential for surprises. Might we see one in this game? The bookies have the Huskies in as a 7-point favorite over New Mexico State, with the point total set at 131 ½. That said, let’s take a look at both teams and how they arrive in this UConn vs New Mexico State matchup so you can bet against their March Madness Odds.

March Madness First Round Betting Preview for UConn Huskies vs New Mexico State Aggies

#5 UConn Huskies versus #12 New Mexico State Aggies Match Info

When: Thursday, March 17 at 6:50 PM EST
Where: KeyBank Center, Buffalo
TV: TNT

Why bet on the UConn Huskies

UConn closed things out with a 23-9 record, and while that is certainly not bad at all, they will also be disappointed to have lost out to Villanova in the semi-final of the Big East Conference Tournament. Still, a #5 seed is a decent reward and one that gives them the potential to make a deep run in the tournament. This, though, is by no means an easy opening round matchup for the Huskies, so they cannot afford to take their opponent for granted. While UConn has won 7 of their last 9 overall, they have not been a particularly great pick against the spread, covering just once in their last 5 games. That said, they are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games played on a Thursday night. They have seen the UNDER hit in each of their last 6 games played in the month of March.

Why bet on the New Mexico State Aggies

No matter what happens in this game, you have to say that it has been a successful season for the New Mexico State Aggies. They closed things out with a 26-6 record, which included hoisting the WAC Championship trophy after a convincing win over Abilene Christian in the final. You always want to head into the tournament on a good run of form and the Aggies are doing that, winning 16 of their last 20. This is a team that has also won 14 of their last 17 games played in the month of March, so if you expect this group to roll over and die in the opening round, you might want to think again. They have also been a good bet against the spread, going 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games overall. The UNDER has hit in 4 of their last 6 games this season.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

I think we are looking at a pretty low-scoring, tight affair here, and while I think that the Aggies might be able to cover the spread, I am looking at the UNDER in this one. I might just be tempted to roll with both of those wagers.

Pick: UConn Huskies 66 New Mexico State Aggies 63

 

 

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No. 11 Syracuse of the ACC barely snuck into the NCAA Tournament and the Orange’s reward is a date with No. 6 San Diego State, the Mountain West champion, on Friday in Round 1. The Aztecs are short favorites on the NCAAB odds.

How to Bet Syracuse vs. San Diego StAte NCAA Basketball Odds & TV Info

When: Friday, 9:40 PM ET
Where: Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
TV: CBS
Radio:com
Opening NCAAB Lines: SDSU -3 (total 139)

Last Meeting

Syracuse is 2-0 all-time against San Diego State. The teams last played on November 11, 2012 aboard the retired aircraft carrier USS Midway. The Orange emerged victorious 62-49.

Why Bet on Syracuse? | 2021 NCAA Basketball Expert Analysis

Jim Boeheim is coaching in his 35th NCAA Tournament. For the fourth straight appearance SU is a No. 8 seed or worse. If you want to trust SU in a close game, you might have good reason: the team shoots 78.4% from the foul line, the best in school history.

“I’ve seen San Diego State play a couple of times,” Boeheim said. “They’re one of the tougher teams you could draw in the tournament. Some teams are big and don’t shoot very well or don’t defend. They defend at a high level, they shoot it at a high level — they’re one of the better shooting teams we’ve seen this year as a team. … So I don’t think you could get a harder matchup, but we’re happy to be playing.”

The Orange beat a soaring North Carolina squad on March 1, but they also were swept by Pitt this season to show their inconsistency. Buddy Boeheim (16.5 PPG), the coach’s son, is one of four players on the roster averaging double figures.

Guard Kadary Richmond is dealing with tendinitis in his knee heading into the NCAA Tournament. The Orange’s standout freshman has averaged just 15 minutes over the team’s last three games after playing 25-plus in six of the previous seven contests. Boeheim is confident that Richmond will be available for SU’s Round of 64 matchup.

Syracuse is making its 41st NCAA Tournament appearance overall. Syracuse is 64-40 (.615) in NCAA Tournament play and has advanced to six Final Fours (1975, 1987, 1996, 2003, 2013, 2016). The Orange have reached three national championship games (1987, 1996, 2003), winning the title in 2003.

This season marks the second time Syracuse has been seeded 11th. The first time was in 2018 when the Orange were the No. 11 seed in the Midwest Region and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. Syracuse is 3-1 all-time as a No. 11 seed. The 2018 tournament also marks the last time the Orange was placed in the Midwest Region.

Why Bet on San Diego State? | 2021 NCAA Basketball Expert Analysis

San Diego State (23-4) was the Mountain West regular-season and tournament champion. With a win over Utah State in Saturday’s Mountain West tournament title matchup, Brian Dutcher’s squad extended its winning streak to 14 games. His team scored 77 points or more in eight of those games. San Diego State also made 40% of its 3-point attempts in league play and was second only to Utah State in defensive efficiency.

A pair of seniors, Matt Mitchell (15.4 PPG) and Jordan Schakel (14.5 PPG), carry the scoring load. Mitchell finished the regular season averaging 15.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists while shooting 43.7 percent from the floor, 36.1 percent from long range and 81.5 percent from the line.

He became the fifth Aztec in the Mountain West era to earn league Player of the Year distinction, joining Brandon Heath (2006), Jamaal Franklin (2012), Xavier Thames (2014) and Malachi Flynn (2020). Schakel has made 46.6% of his 161 3-point attempts. The team still wins on defense, but it’s got more dynamism on offense than in years past.

San Diego State is 6-12 all time in the NCAA tournament and has never won more than two games in a single tourney. Dutcher hopes to become the second coach in SDSU history to win a tournament game, joining his mentor, Steve Fisher.

Since the formation of the conference in the 1999-2000 season, Mountain West schools are just 22-49 in the NCAA tournament (.310 win pct.) and the conference has never had a team get past the Sweet 16. To put that into perspective, 16 other conferences have had at least one team reach the Elite Eight in that span.

The Aztecs, who will be making their 13th Division I NCAA Tournament appearance, have the second-best record (53-6) in the nation since the start of the 2019-20 season.

Expert NBA Prediction

San Diego State 72, Syracuse 69

 

 

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As the calendar turns over to 2020, we are going to see a little shift in the college basketball schedule, as the non-conference games make way for the big rivalry games that will ultimately decide who wins each conference and who gets those coveted high seeds ahead of the tournament. Every single season, we see teams come storming out of the gate, making their non-conference matchups look like a total walk in the park, only for it all to fall apart once we get into the meat and potatoes of conference play.

In a day when other will be chilling and doing nothing, we will have some college basketball to look forward to on New Year’s Day, including a Mountain West Conference matchup between the Fresno State Bulldogs and the as yet unbeaten San Diego State Aztecs. Judging by how things have gone this season, you would expect a bit of a blowout here, but that is the beauty of conference play. You can never be totally sure. Check back in for live NCAAB odds updates as they happen.

Fresno State vs San Diego State 2019 College Basketball Lines & Pick

When: Wednesday, January 1 at 3 PM EST
Where: Viejas Arena, San Diego
TV: ESPN
Radio: SiriusXM
Live Stream: WatchESPN
College Basketball Odds: TBA

Why bet on the Fresno State Bulldogs?

The Fresno State Bulldogs have not had a very good season to this point, going 4-9, and with more Mountain West Games coming their way, things might be about to get even worse. After all, the Bulldogs have played 2 conference games and have dropped them both. You don’t really like their chances of heading into San Diego and getting a win against an Aztecs team that is one of just two undefeated Division 1 teams left in the nation.

We should, though, pay attention to the fact that Fresno State has won 7 of their last 10 meetings with the Aztecs, although I’m not so sure that history will play a role here. The Bulldogs have in fact covered the spread in each of their last 5 visits to San Diego and are 9-3 ATS in their last 12 overall against the Aztecs.

Why bet on the San Diego State Aztecs?

You can look at the 13-0 San Diego State Aztecs and complain that they haven’t really had a meaningful win yet, but the truth is that you can only play the teams on the schedule. Yes, things will certainly get tougher for the Aztecs as the season progresses, but for now, you need to give them credit for making it to this stage of the season as one of only two unbeaten teams in Division 1 college basketball this season.

Their previous issues against Fresno State aside, the Aztecs have been a very decent bet, going 10-5 ATS in their last 15 games overall. They have not been a good bet at home this season, though, going 2-4 ATS in their 6 home games. They have, though, won 7 straight games in their own building.

Expert Pick & Final Score Prediction

he Bulldogs have had the better of this matchup over the years, but the tide had turned this season. This should be a comfortable start to the New Year for the San Diego State Aztecs.

Score: Fresno State Bulldogs 60 – San Diego State Aztecs 78

 

 

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While they may not be among the top teams this year, the Georgetown Hoyas and Connecticut Huskies are still NCAA basketball programs that are considered to be elite. That makes their match-up this weekend something to look forward to, and definitely a game that calls for a wager. The Hoyas will be on the road for this one, and will head into XL Center in Hartford on Saturday, January 23 with hopes of picking up another big win. Tip-off for this one is set for 12 PM EST on CBS.

Georgetown vs UConn Saturday NCAA Basketball Odds Guide

When: Saturday, January 23, 12 PM EST
Where: XL Center, Hartford Connecticut
Radio: Tunein.com

These are two very proud teams that are both boasting pretty decent records this season. The Huskies will be trying to use home court to their advantage, while the Hoyas will be looking for a performance similar to the one they just put in against Xavier. This is going to be a fun one to wager on, so be sure to check back regularly to MyBookie.ag for all the latest NCAA basketball odds.

Why Bet on the Georgetown Hoyas

Georgetown (12-7, 5-2) have had about as tough a schedule as you can imagine recently, as they have had to face ranked opponents in back to back games. They fell 55-50 to #6 ranked Villanova at home, but then followed that up with an impressive 81-72 win over #5 Xavier on the road. While this might seem like a tough proposition for the Hoyas, they seem to be thriving on the road at the moment, as they have now won 4 of their last 5 away from home. The Hoyas will once again be looking to D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera to lead the way, as he is currently leading the teams in points scored and assists per game with 16.4 and 4.4, respectively. Georgetown is averaging 74.1 PPG on offense, and are giving up 68.5 PPG.

Why bet on the Connecticut Huskies

The Huskies (13-5, 4-2) have been incredibly difficult to beat on their home court this season, and they have in fact only dropped a single game, with Temple taking them out earlier this month. It can be argued that the Huskies have padded their stats a little this year by facing a lot of lesser opponents, but those are games that they still have to win. They come into this one having gone 7-3 in their last 10 games, and having rebounded with back to back wins after taking a tough loss on the road at Tulane. The Huskies are a little better defensively than the Hoyas, and they will be looking to shut down a Georgetown offense that doesn’t really set the world on fire. Connecticut are averaging 75.4 PPG, and are giving up 62.7 PPG.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

This is one that I think will come right down to the wire, as these are two teams that are pretty evenly matched. The Hoyas are sure to be riding high after that big win over Xavier, and I think they can steal another one here.

Georgetown Hoyas 69 Connecticut Huskies 68