March Madness Look At Cinderella Squads, Sleepers And Bracket-Busters
Posted by Eric Williams on Tuesday,March 7, 2017 3:18, EDT in
If you’re fired up for the quickly approaching March Madness national championship tournament and you’re in the process of formulating your tourney betting plans, then you should know that there is nothing quite as exuberating – or profitable – than cashing in on a value-packed Cinderella squad, a silent, but deadly sleeper or a bracket-busting bunch of underdogs.
To that end, I’m offering up an expert look at five teams that all have the look of bracket-busting ballclubs that could pull off at least one upset when March Madness predictions gets underway in just over a week. Now, let’s get started.
March Madness Look At Cinderella Squads, Sleepers And Bracket-Busters
Florida Gulf Coast (26-7 SU, 4-0 ATS)
The high-flying Eagles are back at in again after their thrilling tourney run in 2013. Florida Gulf Coast has won seven straight games and nine of their last 10 games overall and ranks an impressive 45th in scoring (79.4 ppg) and jaw-dropping fifth in field goal shooting percentage (50.2%). The Eagles are also solid defensively in limiting the opposition to just 68.8 points per game to rank 86th nationally. Florida Gulf Coast has a true star in leading scorer Brandon Goodwin (18.2 ppg) and a trio of other players that all average double figures in scoring, including forward Demetrius Morant who leads the nation in field goal shooting percentage by making an insane 75.7 percent of his field goal attempts.
Providence (20-11 SU, 20-1 ATS)
Providence is one fire coming into the Big East tournament having won six straight games while beating Butler, a once ranked Xavier ballclub and Creighton along the way. The Friars have a rock-solid defense that limits the opposition to 66.5 points per game to rank 49th nationally and as sports betting enthusiasts everywhere already know, defense wins championships.
Syracuse (18-13 SU, 13-13 ATS)
Syracuse doesn’t look very dangerous at first glance, as the Orange rank 109th in scoring (76.4 ppg) and 136th in points allowed (70.7 ppg). However, when you take a closer look, then you and realize that Syracuse has beaten nationally-ranked ACC conference rivals in Florida State, Virginia and Duke – and that’s when you realize that the Orange are dangerous with a capital ‘D’.
Creighton (23-8 SU, 18-11 ATS)
Creighton Bluejays has really struggled in dropping three of their last four games and five of their last eight games overall, but the Bluejays have also recorded quality wins this season over Butler (twice) and Wisconsin. Creighton also ranks a stellar 16th in scoring (83.5 ppg) and even more impressive third in field goal shooting percentage (51.2%) and that tells me they could shoot out the lights on some unsuspecting favorite.
Northwestern (21-10 SU, 17-11 ATS)
Northwestern has lost three of their last four games and six of nine overall, but the Wildcats also beat Wisconsin and a desperate Michigan squad in a thriller on March 1 to punch their first ticket to March Madness. While Northwestern averages just 71.4 points per game (227th), the Wildcats also rank a stellar 35th in points allowed (64.9 ppg) and it is that kind of defense that could fuel an upset or two for the Wildcats.
