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It is time. March Madness is here, and couple that along with the legalization of sports gambling in many states for their 1st NCAA Tournament, betting will be more prevalent than ever.
Below, we break down Tipico Sportsbook’s NCAA Tournament odds and lines and list Thursday’s best first-round upset bets to cash in on among SportbookWire’s expert college basketball picks and predictions.
The Thursday slate includes a pair of No. 1 seeds — the Kansas Jayhawks and Houston Cougars — taking the court.
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Thursday’s NCAA Tournament upset picks
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Wednesday at 8:01 a.m. ET. All game times ET.
CHARLESTON +5.5 (-115) vs. San Diego State – 3:10 p.m.
San Diego State thrived in the Mountain West, but against competitive teams earlier in the season, it didn’t do so well, losing by 17 to Arizona and 4 to Arkansas. The Aztecs also score via a number of players with 6 averaging more than 7 points per game.
The 28-3 Cougars are more top heavy with 2 players averaging 15 or more and 2 topping 12. The depth may not be there, but the scoring is, especially at a high percentage with their top playmakers hitting over 43% of their shots.
Charleston beat Virginia Tech, Davidson and Richmond in the early part of the season. It should compete and at least cover. Taking the 5.5 points is a smart play.
FURMAN +5.5 (-115) vs. Virginia – 12:40 p.m.
Furman ranks 8th in the nation in scoring, 21st in field goal percentage and 10th in 3-point FG attempts per game. It is going to run and gun, and the Cavaliers play the exact opposite style, sitting 280th in 3-point field goal attempts per game.
In March, being able to score, especially for these underdogs, is paramount, and Furman can do that. Virginia lost to high-octane offenses like North Carolina, Miami and Houston during the regular season. Expect it to struggle so back the dog here.
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PENN STATE +2.5 (-102) vs. Texas A&M – 9:55 p.m.
The Nittany Lions have a potent offense, and they made their presence felt in the Big Ten Tournament, reaching the final and almost beating the No. 1 seed Purdue Boilermakers.
Penn State has covered 4 straight games and should be able to hold its own here. It took down tourney teams Indiana, Northwestern and Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament. Texas A&M, on the other hand, ended its tournament with a 19-point loss to No. 1 Alabama.
The Nittany Lions also rank 9th in the nation in 3-point shooting percentage (38.5%). It can hang with anyone with that on its side, and I would back it to cover here.
MISSOURI +1.5 (-108) vs. Utah State – 1:40 p.m.
No. 10 Utah State is favored over No. 7 Missouri. The Aggies don’t have many quality wins on the season. They didn’t have a great non-conference schedule and went 1-3 to San Diego State and Boise State this season.
Missouri, on the other hand, has wins over No. 4 Tennessee, No. 6 Kentucky, No. 9 Illinois, No. 6 Iowa State and many others. It also beat SEMO, which made the tournament. Ultimately, considering the schedule and the odds, back Missouri to beat Utah State as a slight underdog.
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