Tag: 2022 NCAA Tournament

Kerr Kriisa’s gruesome injury presents Arizona (and Wildcats bettors) with an impossible decision

That is a nasty looking injury.

Arizona starting guard Kerr Kriisa is a question mark for their Round of 64 game of the NCAA Tournament.

Kriisa hasn’t played since suffering an ankle injury last Thursday in the closing seconds of Arizona’s Pac-12 quarterfinal game. Without him, the Wildcats were still able to beat Colorado in the semis and second-seeded UCLA in the championship game. Suffice it to say, they’ll be heavily favored to beat the winner of the First Four game between Wright State and Bryant even if Kriisa remains out. However, it only gets more difficult beyond that with the 8-9 winner looming.

By the time Arizona begins tournament play on Friday, it will have been a full week since Kriisa suffered the injury. He shared a photo Monday that doesn’t look promising for his chances to be 100%, but the caption sounds like he wants to give it a go soon.

The deeper Arizona gets into the tournament, the more important Kriisa becomes as the margin for errors shrink. He’s their lead facilitator, with a team-high five assists per game, and he also leads the team in made three-pointers (78). Kriisa is one of four Wildcats averaging double-digit scoring (10.1 points).

“The update is he’s doing everything he can to prepare himself and give himself the opportunity to play,” head coach Tommy Lloyd told Arizona Sports on Monday.

“We’re hopeful, but at the end of the day I think we proved this last weekend no matter who we roll out there and who we go against, we’ll be competitive.”

Arizona has the second-best odds to win the NCAA championship at +600 and its odds to make the Final Four are tied for second at +150. The team’s depth is a big reason why, as it can count on a number of players to pick up the scoring load and has another guard in the lineup, Dalen Terry, who averages four assists himself.

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The team’s depth makes it possible that Arizona decides to let Kriisa heal an extra game or more before testing out his ankle, hoping to advance without their point guard but have him healthier down the line. It certainly represents a risk when betting Arizona futures, but one that could potentially pay off if he can return close to his old form.

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Winner’s Circle: Can conference tournament success help predict the Final Four?

Is conference tournament success somehow related to the Final Four?

Welcome to the Winner’s Circle, a weekly column by Bet For The Win senior writer Prince J. Grimes. Here, you’ll read about stats and trends that can help you make informed betting predictions for the week ahead and beyond. Got something you want to see in the next Winners Circle, shoot Prince a message and check back next week for the response.

Last week ended with a bang, and I’m not talking about the bracket reveals on Selection Sunday. Just when we — or maybe just some of us — thought we had seen the last of Tom Brady, the GOAT decided retirement wasn’t a life he could enjoy yet and announced his return to the NFL. With Brady back under center, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are once again among the title favorites for the 2022 NFL season.

Brady successfully diverted attention away from March Madness, but not before the entire men’s tournament field was announced. Arizona, Baylor, Gonzaga and Kansas all landed No. 1 seeds, but Kentucky also has top-four odds to cut down the nets when it’s all over. Here’s a guide to betting the first four games, which get started Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the NFL’s new league year will begin and free agents can officially sign with teams. We’ve already seen some splash moves this offseason with the trades of Russell Wilson and Khalil Mack, and Aaron Rodgers’ return to Green Bay. Now, the names on the free agent market will have a chance to land somewhere and teams like the Las Vegas Raiders, who have the longest betting odds to win their division, will have a chance to play catch up.

Here are a few more things I’m looking at in the week ahead.

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How to bet on the 2022 NCAA Men’s Tournament First Four games

Which of these eight teams will move on in the tournament?

The NCAA men’s tournament bracket has been revealed and the Big Ten landed a tourney-best nine teams in the field of 68, including two in the first four games.

Rutgers and Indiana were among the last four in and will be among the first eight to tip things off for a chance to advance out of Dayton, Ohio and into their respective regions.

Fighting for the 11th seed in the West region, Rutgers will take on Notre Dame. Indiana faces Wyoming for the 12th seed in the East. And for the 16 seeds in the Midwest and South regions, Texas Southern will play Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Wright State will play Bryant.

Here’s how to bet these all too important matchups.

All odds provided via Tipico

Michigan State basketball’s tip time against Davidson announced

Michigan State and Davidson will be tipping off late on Friday night

Michigan State will be making their 24th straight NCAA Tournament appearance as a 7-seed in the West region against the 10th seeded Davidson Wildcats. Tipoff is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. on Friday night, and will be televised on CBS.

The Spartans and Wildcats will be squaring off in Greenville, South Carolina, and will be playing following the Duke and Cal State Fullerton game, making the tip time fluid.

Michigan State and Davidson’s game will be within the last block of games in the Round of 64 in the NCAA Tournament on Friday.

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NC State got the No. 1 seed in women’s Bridgeport Region, then got stuck with UConn

Sheesh, this is a tough draw for the Wolfpack.

For the second straight season, the N.C. State women’s basketball team earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. The ACC tournament champion is the top team in the Bridgeport Region, but they’ll have a major challenge in front of them as there’s a potential matchup with perennial powerhouse UConn looming on the horizon.

Bridgeport, Connecticut is about an hour and change away from UConn’s campus in Storrs, making it essentially a home game for the Huskies. Geno Auriemma’s squad went 25-5 this season, and dealt with the absence of superstar Paige Bueckers as she dealt with a knee injury.

While NC State fans weren’t very happy with the draw, it would make for a great matchup for neutral observers at home.

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The 2022 NCAA women’s tournament printable bracket: Get in on March Madness fun

Get your bracket for the 2022 NCAA women’s tournament!

March Madness season is officially here!

It’s time to bust out those brackets, as Selection Sunday has come and gone for the 2022 NCAA women’s tournament. The full slate of 68 teams has been selected, with the first round getting started on March 16.

And if you’re looking to fill out a bracket of your own, we’ve put together a printable blank one for you to use as you see fit! You can download the blank PDF file here.

Here’s how the 2022 NCAA women’s tournament bracket looks coming out of Selection Sunday with all 68 teams filled in.

Create your men’s and women’s tournament brackets at USA TODAY Sports.

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NCAA Tournament: No. 6 Colorado State Faces No. 11 Michigan

The CSU Rams are back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013. Get to know their first round opponent the Michigan Wolverines.

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NCAA Tournament: No. 6 Colorado State Faces No. 11 Michigan

Selection Sunday handed a good matchup for this Rams squad.

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Who are the Wolverines?

Colorado State was surely disappointed to lose in the semi-finals of the Mountain West tournament, but their spirits were lifted Sunday afternoon thanks to the NCAA selection committee. The Rams were given a six seed and will face the Michigan Wolverines from the Big Ten Conference.

What to Know About Michigan:

RECORD: 17-14 That record doesn’t look great on the surface and Michigan had an up and down season, but this is a solid squad. Michigan has one Quad 3 loss, a confusing loss to UCF, and went 8-13 in Quad 1 & 2 games. Michigan also got a few upsets along the way, including a 24 point beatdown of then #4 ranked Purdue.

KenPom: 33rd

Michigan has a very similar rating to Colorado State (31st). Adjusted offensive efficiency, adjusted defensive efficiency, and adjusted tempo are very similar rankings. The only large difference comes in terms of luck. Michigan is ranked 238th in KenPom’s luck ranking, while the Rams are 6th.

Best Wins: San Diego State, Purdue, Ohio State

The Wolverines only have one non-conference win against an NCAA tournament team and that was San Diego State, a team Colorado State struggled against. Their other big wins were that beat down of then #4 Purdue and regular season finale win over #23 Ohio State.

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Key Players:

Hunter Dickinson:

The 7’1″, 260lbs sophomore center presents a challenge for the Rams. The one thing Colorado State truly lacks is size inside. They’ve done a good job compensating this year, but 18.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game to go along with a 56.3 FG% is a dangerous matchup. Especially when he’s not afraid to take a three point shot either.

Eli Brooks:

One of two senior guards for the Wolverines, Brooks is Michigan’s second leading scorer at 12.3 points per game. He’s also their main deep threat, shooting 38.9% from three ranking second among regular contributors. He also chips in a little bit everywhere with 3.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.2 steals per game.

DeVante’ Jones:

The other senior guard for the Wolverines is their floor general and third leading scorer. Jones averages 10.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game. He’s been on a rol1 to end the year for Michigan, averaging 16.2 points per game to lift them into bubble contention.

A match-up between two teams with similar metrics but different philosophies. This will be a challenge for the Rams because Michigan starts three players 6’8″ and taller. The thing that might work in CSU’s favor is that Michigan doesn’t like to go to their bench. The winner gets the winner of 3 vs. 14 game between Tennessee and Longwood.

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The best reactions from men’s March Madness selection show, including Rutgers, Wyoming and more

Let’s go dancing!

One of the best parts of Selection Sunday is seeing teams react to the moment their names are read as part of the NCAA tournament bracket. It’s a reward for hard work (and maybe a little luck) and it’s so endearing to see the incredible emotions that come out when they realize they’re going dancing.

For some programs — like Rutgers this year — it’s finding out you made it off the bubble. For others, it’s hearing you earned that one-seed you were aiming for. Regardless, it’s awesome to see that much pure joy, especially after no tournament in 2020 and a fan-less tournament in 2021.

Let’s have some fun.

Tennessee got a three seed in the NCAA Tournament, and the internet was furious

The NCAA Tournament committee will have a tough time explaining how this makes any sense.

The Tennessee Volunteers finished with a 26-7 overall record and won the SEC tournament. It looked like Rick Barnes’s squad had played themselves onto the two-line in the NCAA Tournament bracket, especially after Duke fell to Virginia Tech in the ACC title game.

Instead, the Vols heard their name called as the No. 3 seed in the South Region. They’ll face 14-seed Longwood, but it was kind of shocking to a lot of people that Tennessee didn’t get the nod as a two.

Tennessee is the No. 7 team on KenPom, ahead of both Villanova and Duke (who each earned two-seeds). The Vols had a ridiculous 11-7 Quad 1 record, compared to 7-6 for the Wildcats and 6-2 for the Blue Devils.

Expectedly, the internet had thoughts about this committee misstep.