Betting on March Madness Week 2

The second weekend of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, or March Madness, is here. The first two rounds are in the books and the tournament’s been narrowed down to sixteen teams, also known as the Sweet 16. Those games are to be played Thursday and Friday, with the winners advancing to the Elite 8, which will be played on Saturday and Sunday.

With March Madness, of course, comes big betting. The results of the tournament’s games are often surprising and unpredictable, but I’ve provided a guide here on some of the bets for this weekend.

Miami vs. Houston

The number-5 seed, University of Miami (Florida), is taking on the division’s number-1 seed in the Houston Cougars. The Cougars are -7.5 favorites in the contest -375 on the moneyline. The Hurricanes are +7.5 on the spread and +290 on the moneyline. Needless to say, Houston is rather a heavy favorite.

But be careful with this one. The Miami Hurricanes have been solid all season, and the rebounding of Norchad Omier has proven to be a decisive advantage in contentious games. There’s a good chance he shines once again in this game and provides his team with multiple opportunities for second or even third-chance points.

The ‘Canes are also bolstered by the ACC Player of the Year, Isaiah Wong. He’s a versatile scorer and solid shooter who earned the ACC’s most prestigious award after the best season of his college career.

Miami should not be underestimated in this contest, even against the heavily-favored, legitimate championship contender Houston. That spread of -7.5 is sizable and may not be giving Miami enough credit. I suggest betting on Miami to cover the spread. They may not win, but I find it unlikely Houston wins by that much against such a solid team.

When it comes to the moneyline, Houston is such a heavy favorite that it’s really not worth it to bet on them. Given what I think to be Miami’s real chances in this year’s March Madness tournament, I believe betting on Miami on the moneyline is a better move.

Florida Atlantic vs. Kansas State

Another interesting spread is the Florida Atlantic vs. Kansas State game. The Elite Eight matchup features the 9-seed Owls against the 3-seed Wildcats.

In a matchup where normally the higher seed should be heavily favored, Kansas State is only favored at -1.5. Vegas is essentially saying this game is a toss-up. I beg to differ.

Though FAU has had quite the Cinderella run, those usually come to a close around this point in the tournament. The teams are simply too high-level at this point for lower-seeded teams to have legitimate chances. Of course, this is March Madness, and anything can happen. But I see Kansas State winning by more than 2.

However, it should be noted that betting on such a close matchup is always very risky. If Vegas considers it close, that’s usually for good reason.

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