March Madness Betting Guide: Sweet 16 & Championship Odds

March Madness has officially begun as Selection Sunday bestowed the brackets that we will all fill out. The journey is chaotic, but the big money to be won is by selecting the National Champion. The March Madness Betting Guide will look at the odds for who will win the big dance, and a few bets to who will advance to the Sweet 16. Double down on your brackets by betting through some of the Best Basketball Betting Sites.

March Madness Betting Odds

The Sweet 16

Top teams like Gonzaga and Arizona won’t maximize your bets here. However, teams like 11 seed UCLA and Syracuse, 12 seed Oregon State, & 15 seed Oral Roberts would of paid out significantly last year. The secret to March Madness betting is to place bets at every stage of the tournament.

11. Virginia Tech +250

Virginia Tech is hot. They just won the ACC tournament beating Clemson, Notre Dame, North Carolina, & Duke. They were disrespected as an 11 seed in the tournament, but will face off against a very beatable Texas team. The Longhorns have lost the last three games straight and they themselves have worse odds to get to the Sweet 16 (+275). Next would likely be Purdue, who has been uninspired entering the tournament with below average defense.

7. Murray State +600

Murray State finished the year at 30-2 with a win against 8 Memphis and 13 Chattanooga, and a loss to 2 Auburn. They will have two tough matchups to get to the Sweet 16 in 10 San Francisco and 2 Kentucky (or I guess possibly 15 St. Peter’s). They will have to win two close games, but the Racers could pull off one of the big upsets in 2022.

6. Colorado State +800

They will face up first against a Michigan team that should of had a play in game. People love betting on Michigan because of loyalty and the brand name, but Juwan Howard is no Steve Fischer. The Rams should easily win the first, but will most likely have to face three seed Tennessee. The Volunteers deserved a number two seed after winning the SEC tournament (especially over Auburn or Duke). Tennessee is good, but Colorado State should of also been seeded higher (probably a five).

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The National Championship Winner

1. Gonzaga +300

The Zags are most people’s top pick to win the bracket, but they will have one of the toughest paths. The West has Duke, Texas Tech, Arkansas, UCONN, and even their second game in Boise State/Memphis will be tough. Not to mention a possible Gonzaga/Baylor matchup in the Final 4. However, I have the Zags winning in most of my brackets.

1. Arizona +600

Arizona looked good this year, except in the Pac-12 Conference Tournament. They struggled with 4 seed UCLA, NIT Colorado, and just a bad Stanford team in the last three games. Most people have Gonzaga playing either Arizona or Kansas. The Wildcats will likely get matchups against Houston, Tennessee or Villanova, before playing the winner of the Midwest.

1. Kansas +900

The Jayhawks might have one of the hardest paths as both SDSU & Creighton are hot defensive teams, followed most likely by Iowa and Auburn, followed by Arizona or whoever wins the South. Kansas may have won the Big 12 Tournament, but they also have lost to Texas Tech, Texas, TCU, & Dayton this year.

1. Baylor +1200

The Big 12 is the best conference in the NCAA with two number ones and just overall better teams than the highly touted Big Ten. Baylor will get a chance of repeat Championship, but will have to win out in the East with North Carolina, UCLA, and Kentucky. However, just remember it is 2022 and all three of those teams are not what they used to be.

3. Tennessee +1800

Tennessee was robbed of their rightful two seed and will now likely get Colorado State in the second round. If they can beat the Rams, they will likely play Villanova, Arizona, and the winner of the Midwest. It is not easy, but possible and +1800 is nice.

5. Iowa +2500

Iowa was also robbed of a four, possibly three seed (as they are better than three seed Wisconsin). The Hawkeyes will have to win out the Midwest with Kansas and Auburn before beating the South. I like Iowa’s odds over any other team in the Midwest, even Kansas.

16. Bryant +500,000

Bryant would have to win seven games, and they are a 16 seed. Furthermore, their first real game would be against Arizona and the South is the hardest of the four divisions. If it somehow were to happen, that would be a lot of money won on a small bet. Is it really any worse than playing the lottery? Plus Peter Kiss is fun to watch leading the league in scoring.

After the NCAA basketball season is over, look for the Best Baseball Betting Tips to guide you through a highly competitive MLB season.