In men’s college basketball, we are a week away from Selection Sunday — when the tournament committee will fill out the bracket for the 68 teams who will vie for the national championship. The Utah State Aggies became the first automatic entrant with a win over San Diego State in the Mountain West Conference tournament championship. San Diego State had been viewed as a #1 seed, but that loss could push them to a lower slot now. Baylor lost to West Virginia, dropping their fourth game in their last five, which could push them out of a #1 seed as well. The Texas Longhorns had been pushing hard to get at-large consideration, but they lost at home on Saturday to Oklahoma State, a 16-14 team, by 22 points. Texas could still get some consideration if they beat Texas Tech in the Big 12 quarterfinals on Thursday, but that prospect is murky at best. UCLA had fought their way to the top of the Pac-12 standings, but then they lost to USC in the regular season finale and will not share in the conference title. Thanks to some bad losses early in the season, they will need to win at least two games in the Pac-12 tournament to get into the tournament. Of course, given their recent run of play, the Bruins could run the table in this tournament. If college basketball will play a role in your College Basketball betting this week, don’t miss our top two picks.
NCAAB: Top Betting Picks of the Week
Monday, March 9
Wofford vs East Tennessee State (7:00 pm ET, ESPN)
The Southern Conference will crown its champion on Monday night, as top-seeded East Tennessee State will take on seventh-seeded Wofford. Wofford has won three games to get to the finals, knocking off ten-seed Citadel in the play-in, and then upsetting two-seed Furman in the quarterfinals. They then beat six-seed Chattanooga in the semifinals, and they could make an unlikely appearance in the Big Dance with a win in the finals. Wofford had lost seven games in a row going into the tournament but has turned things around. In their win over Chattanooga, Storm Murphy led the Terriers with 15 points. Tray Hollowell had a dozen points.
East Tennessee State rolls in on an 11-game winning streak, with a record of 29-4. They have already beaten VMI and Western Carolina in the tournament. In their win over Western Carolina, Daivien Williamson led the Buccaneers with 20 points. Tray Boyd added 18 points and six boards. Bo Hodges and Isaiah Tisdale also scored 13 points apiece. Wofford is 6-2 against the spread in their last eight games as an underdog. The spread is East Tennessee State by 6 ½, but in their two regular season matchups, East Tennessee State won both — but just by a combined seven points. So I’m taking Wofford to cover.
Final Score Prediction: ETSU 57, Wofford 55
St. Mary’s (CA) vs BYU (11:30 pm ET, ESPN2)
The ridiculousness known as the West Coast Conference tournament bracket, in which an eight-seed would have to win five games to take the title while the one- or two-seed would just have to win two, continues on Monday night as the BYU Cougars take on the Saint Mary’s (CA) Gaels in one semifinal. St. Mary’s comes in having beaten Pepperdine in double overtime, while BYU has been waiting for an opponent as the #2 seed.
In their win over Pepperdine, Jordan Ford led the Gaels with 42 points, pulling down five rebounds as well. Malik Fitts and Tommy Kuhse put up 11 points each and combined to grab 13 boards and dish out six assists. BYU has won nine games in a row, including wins over Santa Clara, Gonzaga and Pepperdine. They also played Pepperdine in their last game, finishing out their regular season. They also took down Pepperdine, getting 38 points from Yoeli Childs. Zac Seljaas scored a dozen points and picked up six rebounds and three assists. T.J. Haws had eight points and 13 assists. BYU has scored 81 or more points in three straight games. Can the Gaels regroup after expending all that energy in a double-overtime win?
Final Score Prediction: BYU 88, St. Mary’s 82
