The NCAA March Madness Basketball Tournament is fast approaching, and there are many ways to make some real money, with the first wave of conference tournaments starting this weekend. This Saturday will deliver the season’s first automatic NCAA Tournament bid when the Ohio Valley Conference crowns its champion on ESPN2, alongside quarterfinals and semifinals across multiple mid-major leagues.
The main focus will be on exploring exclusive bets you can place or monitor on Saturday. Tournament winners’ futures are still available to bet on and monitor throughout all the conference tournaments in college basketball. All odds are consensus on all sportsbooks, and bet responsibly. Let’s break down the slate of a few conference tournaments and headlines to come.
Ohio Valley Conference Championship – The First Bid on the Line
When/Where/TV: Saturday, March 7, ~9 p.m. ET, Ford Center, Evansville, Ind., ESPN2
The OVC is the first championship of Champ Week. Top seed Tennessee State (regular-season champ) earned a double-bye and is the clear leader in the conference. Early results already eliminated lower seeds, setting up Tennessee State for the championship game tomorrow against Morehead State.
My Best Bet: Tennessee State to Win
I believe that Tennessee State is a good pick here for a few reasons. This team dominated the regular season with elite defense and rebounding. They have the league’s best offensive efficiency margin, averaging 80 points per game, and the edge in experience in neutral-site elimination games. What stands out most is the star talent on the team, led by OVC player of the year Aaron Nkrumah and Travis Harper. Both Average 17 points per game, making them the league’s best scoring duo. What also helps this team is the coaching excellence led by first-year coach Nolan Smith, who was coach of the year, which has helped them not only offensively but also defensively. Historical data shows the OVC #1 seed wins the tournament ~65% of the time when it reaches the final.
Longshot:
If you prefer a riskier bet in this game, it would be the spread for both teams in this game. The spread has historically favored the underdogs, with an 86.7% against-the-spread run. It will be an exciting bet to watch, knowing this game can come down to the wire in the second half when teams are leading.
America East Quarterfinals – Home-Court Dominance Plays
When/Where: Saturday; higher-seeded hosts (campus sites), ESPN+ or local streams.
Top seeds get byes and host: UMBC is the favorite to win the tournament, while other teams are hoping for some early-March Madness magic to help them clinch a berth in the big dance.
My Best Bet: Vermont To Win the America East Tournament
- I believe that Vermont has a good chance of winning this conference for logistical reasons. They have elite defense; they consistently rebound well and challenge opponents to highly contested shots in high-pressure situations. They have a strong performance record against rivals, including Bryant and other top-seeded opponents. Lastly, the coaching experience speaks for itself, with John Becker a successful coach in the conference, driving the team towards sustained success.
Longshot:
If you prefer a riskier bet in this conference tournament, I would suggest looking at the over/under on points in the championship game. The reason I believe this is that they build high-stakes pressure, help create slower tempos, and strive for top-tier defence in the big game. 9 out of the last 11 championship games have gone under on the total points in a win-or-go-home championship game.
Big Sky Conference First Round – Neutral-Site Upset Potential
When/Where: Saturday in Boise, Idaho (neutral site), ESPN+
Portland State and Montana State are the top seeds with byes to the quarterfinals; Saturday features opening-round games like Idaho vs. Sacramento State & Northern Arizona vs. Idaho. The Favorite to win this tournament is Montana State at +350 (via DraftKings).
My Game Play:
- For my best bet, I will take the Idaho spread of 6.5 odds at -108 (via DraftKings). I want to take this pick because they are on a winning streak as of late, and in their last three games, they have improved their offensive shooting and can play good situational basketball when it matters in March.
Longshot:
My long shot for this conference is Portland State winning the conference tournament at +400 (via DraftKings). I believe in this because they have an elite defense, scoring defense averaging almost 70 points per game, and having more than 12 forced turnovers. The main driving point is that they have a good defensive player, Tre-Vaughn Minott, a two-time Big Sky defensive player of the year, leading in rebounds and in double-doubles, along with a good coach, Jase Coburn, who was named coach of the year in the conference, leading them to their most successful season in two decades.
Other Bets To Watch For:
- Big Major Conferences: The main impactful conference tournaments, such as the Big East, ACC, Big Ten, SEC, and Big 12, don’t begin until next week. Keep an eye on teams like St. John’s, Duke, Virginia, Michigan, Florida, and Iowa State making big runs in the conference tournaments, playing in great competition and in great value, to add pressure to these ranked teams.
- MAC Conference: Watch out for the MAC conference as Miami Ohio continues their undefeated regular season since Gonzaga back in the 2020-2021 season. Each game in that tournament will be intriguing to watch as Miami-Ohio is +185 to win the whole tournament.
