List of Current Odds to Win The NCAA Tournament Can Be Found Below!

The NCAA Tournament is through its first round, and there has been plenty of madness to go around.

The Big East has taken a major, major hit, as only Villanova, Syracuse, West Virginia, and Pittsburgh remain from a conference which had eight bids (seven of which were Top-6 seeds) at the start of this tournament. Survival also wasn’t easy for the Wildcats, who went from +800 at the outset of March Madness to +2500 after narrowly beating lowly #15 Robert Morris on Thursday afternoon.

Many find the #10 seed in this bracket, the St. Mary’s Gaels to be a team to watch out for. The South Region is probably the weakest region left, and if there is a #10 seed that can come out of nowhere and go to the Final Four, this may be it. C Omar Samhan was mired in foul trouble for the majority of the Gaels’ game against the Richmond Spiders on Thursday afternoon, but he still picked up 29 points and 12 rebounds. St. Mary’s has a team that can stroke the three-ball like none other in the country (41.2%), and that has led it into the Round of 32 in the dance.

There are a few other teams that may be worth taking a flier on because of the strength (or lack thereof) of their upcoming games. The #3 New Mexico Lobos may be an underdog to the #11 Washington Huskies on Saturday, but catching a #3 seed at +6600 after one round seems just too good to pass on. HC Steve Alford’s club may have struggled just a bit with their #14 seed in the first round of this tournament, but make no mistake about it. This is a team that can play with anyone in America. A potential date with #2 West Virginia is going to be difficult, but at these types of odds, the Mountain West regular season champions are going to be worth a look.

On the other side of the bracket, things appear to be set up quite nicely for the #2 Ohio State Buckeyes in the Midwest. Yes, Ohio State knows that two rounds from now, it is probably going to have to face #1 Kansas, but #3 Georgetown and #7 Georgia Tech have both already been dismissed from this tournament, which really could set up the stage for an easy waltz for the Bucks to the Elite 8. Considering grabbing their stock at +1400 while that number is still available, because they clearly have better than a one in 14 chance of winning this tournament right now.

All that the chalk holding up in the West Bracket did was set up the stage for Syracuse to continue to march on. No one expects #8 Gonzaga to give the ‘Cuse a game, and with Vanderbilt already dismissed from this region, a trip to the Elite 8 seems like a formality. Yes, there are four very nasty teams sitting on the other side of this bracket, but the Orange are going to be favored no matter who they play, and if they reach the Elite 8, having +700 on a #1 seed at that stage is having a fantastic price.

Current March Madness Odds @ 5Dimes Sportsbook(as of 3/20/10):
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Kansas +250
Kentucky +475
Syracuse +700
Duke +750
West Virginia +1200
Ohio State +1400
Kansas State +1500
Villanova +2500
Baylor +3000
Pittsburgh +4500
Michigan State +4500
Butler +4500
BYU +4500
Wisconsin +5500
Maryland +5500
Tennessee +5500
New Mexico +6600
Texas A&M +6600
Purdue +7500
Xavier +7500
California +7500
Washington +7500
Gonzaga +8000
Missouri +10000
Georgia Tech +10000
Wake Forest +12500
St. Mary’s +12500
Northern Iowa +15000
Cornell +15000
Old Dominion +20000
Murray State +22500
Ohio +25000

Someone’s going to have to forgive Big East Commissioner John Marinatto if this is what he looks like after yesterday’s NCAA Tournament games from his conference.

It’s bad enough that that’s Buzz Williams, the head coach of the Marquette Golden Eagles, who crashed out of the dance in their most predictable fashion: losing by two points practically at the buzzer. It was par for the course for a team that only suffered one loss by double digits all year long and lost six games in conference by less than a touchdown.

An 11 seed (as the Washington Huskies were) from a power conference (even though there’s a debate about just how “powerful” the Pac-10 was this year) isn’t the end of the world. Upsets happen all the time like that this time of year, and the Big East knew that it wasn’t going to have an 8-0 first round of this tournament in all likelihood.

Even losing the Notre Dame Fighting Irish wasn’t all that big of a deal to the Big East. After all, the Irish were probably the weakest of tournament teams out of this conference, and they were still adapting to a new system and life where their best player (Luke Harangody) was coming off of the bench and not starting.

Notre Dame was probably an overrated #6 seed playing against an Old Dominion squad that was probably an underrated #11. So it was par for the course for the luck of the Irish to run out late in the game against the Monarchs, and again, it wasn’t that big of a deal or that black of an eye to take.

Now… Villanova…. You’re a significantly, significantly different story.

Once upon a time a threat to take over the #1 spot in the AP Poll, the Villanova Wildcats entered this tournament looking to make amends for a bad showing in the Big East Tournament, which wrapped up after just one game following a loss to the aforementioned Golden Eagles. Surely, there was no way that there was even a remote struggle coming for a team that was going to be on the #1 line of the tourney if not for that late season swoon, right?

Wrong.

Nova was acting like a defeated team before it even stepped anywhere near the court in Providence on Thursday. HC Jay Wright benched both G Corey Fisher and G Scottie Reynolds at the outset of the game for a violation of team rules. His Cats fell behind Robert Morris, the Northeast Conference champions early. No big deal, right?

It is a big deal when you’re still behind by nine points late in the game! However, thanks to officiating that allowed the Wildcats back into the game and some great free throw shooting from Reynolds (who had better have had a great day from the charity stripe after going 2/15 from the floor and 1/8 from downtown), somehow, the Cats clawed their way into overtime. From there, they asserted themselves, and finally downed the scrappy Colonials.

It was all over the news during the 2:30 games as well as in that break between the morning and afternoon sessions. Everyone was talking about how Villanova is done and how St. Mary’s is going to pick it off on Saturday and that that was that for the Big East giants.

That statement might’ve been almost right… But maybe that was that for the Big East period.

Hey Georgetown Hoyas, all you had to do was go out and take care of an Ohio Bobcats team that was probably overrated as a #14, as it was the #9 seed in its own lousy conference during the year and really beat no one of any real note outside of the MAC this year. You could’ve restored order in your own conference.

Instead, you fell behind by double digits in the first half, played a miserable defensive game, and ultimately crashed out of the tourney in the most embarrassing way possible.

It’s not even like the Hoyas can say that they were just a victim of the proverbial “March Madness.” This wasn’t a situation where Vanderbilt was in, where it just got unlucky with a crazy shot at the end of the game. There were no crazy shots. There was just sheer domination.

So now, the Big East enters its second day of basketball, and Syracuse, West Virginia, Louisville, and Pittsburgh will hope to make a better impression on the college basketball world than what their conference brethren did yesterday.

The lesson learned, though, is that the big, bad Big East might not be quite as big and bad as we once thought.

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The field of 65 has been set as the NCAA Tournament is about set to begin on Thursday! Here at Bankroll Sports, we’re going to take a look at some of the tournament-long props that you can invest in at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link)

We’ll have a look at your March Madness prop sheet on a daily basis in this tournament, as we analyze the best ways to boost your bankrolls for the rest of the three-week spectacle.

Prop Bet #1 – Total Number of Games Won by the Pac-10 – Over/Under 1.5: Boy, doesn’t it feel like a slam dunk that a conference that normally has a ton of entrants in it is going to find a way to win two measly games out of 64? Not this year. Both Washington and Cal were subjected to three games in as many nights in the Pac-10 Tournament, and both must be on incredibly tired legs. The Golden Bears really don’t have a great chance at grabbing more than one victory, as they have to deal with Duke in the second round of the tournament if they can beat Louisville, a team that many think can do some real damage in the dance. The only other option for the Pac-10 is its conference champion, Washington. U-Dub was a fringe bubble team at best before winning the conference, and now it’s being asked to beat a Marquette team which may be the most underrated squad in the entire country. If by chance the Huskies survive as the #11 seed in the South, they’ll have to play Baylor, largely considered one of the most talented teams in the nation. Seeing one of these two teams get a win seems like a reasonable option, but two is a bit far-fetched and zero is much more reasonable. Even if the two do split in Round 1, neither one is likely to be a favorite in the second round, so laying -150 chalk is a good option for a prop that may be a winner by the end of the day on Friday.

Selection: Pac-10 Under 1.5 Wins (-150) at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link)

Prop Bet #2 – Will a #14, #15, or #16 seed win a game?: The odds in this one look to be stacked a bit against you from the get-go, but let’s take a closer look at this virtual 12-team play or fade parlay. Since the expansion of the tournament to 64 teams in 1985, there have only been four #2 seeds out of 100 that have been defeated. Fifteen of the 100 #14s advanced to round two (and for what it’s worth, two of those made it to the Sweet 16). History will tell you that, if all things are considered equal, there are 19 times in 25 tournaments, or once every 1.3 tournaments that this happens. So, everyone is going to promptly jump on the “no” in this prop at even money and think that they’re getting a steal, and then complain when some unlikely #15 seed blows up their bet. Don’t be fooled! The #14s this season are all very, very dangerous clubs, and for our money, we think the #3s are especially weak. The odds say that someone big is going down at some point early in this tournament. Bank on the madness that is March to claim a huge scalp on one of the first two days.

Selection: Yes (-130) at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link)

Prop Bet #3 – Total Games Won by Atlantic 10 Teams – Over/Under 2.5 Wins: There’s a reason that the A-10 is favored in all three of its first round games this year. The Temple Owls, Richmond Spiders, and Xavier Musketeers not only have first round winning abilities, but in the event that even two of them get upset in Round 1, any of the three can also roll to the Elite 8 and make this prop a winner for you the hard way as well. Temple is especially dangerous in a very defensive mini-bracket in Jacksonville, and if it can survive a first round date with Cornell, we like this team’s chances of making it to the Sweet 16. That would leave either a victory for the Spiders against a St. Mary’s team that might not have been in the NCAA Tournament without the WCC crown, or one for Xavier over what has to be a very, very tired Minnesota team which played four games in as many nights at Conseco Fieldhouse last week.

Selection: A-10 Over 2.5 Wins (-140) at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link.)

List of Current Odds to Win The West Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) If there’s a team like a George Mason that is going to come out of nowhere to go to the Final Four, the West Bracket is where is most likely to happen. Some of the best mid-major teams in America are all in this at-large heavy region, and they’re all gunning to be the next Cinderella team to come out of nowhere and become a legitimate threat for the National Championships.

It’s possible to think that the #1 team in this bracket, the Syracuse Orange, may have nothing but mid-majors to face en route to the Final Four. Their first serious test after #16 Vermont is going to be either #8 Gonzaga or #9 Florida State. The Seminoles are the only lower seed on the board to be favored over a higher seed in the first round. Still, everyone knows that HC Mark Few’s club is capable of dominant March Madness runs year in and year out, and the Orange have to be worried to tangle with them so early in the tournament.

The #5 Butler Bulldogs, #12 UTEP Miners, and #13 Murray State Racers are also big time mid-majors that feel like they can do a ton of damage this March. Both the Miners and Racers have to feel shafted for their seedings in the dance. Though UTEP only has itself to blame for not winning the Conference USA Tournament, Murray State did its job and won the Ohio Valley with a dominant record. Yet, as a #13 seed, the Racers face the daunting task of taking on the SEC’s #4 Vanderbilt Commodores in Round 1.

On the other half of the draw, two very underrated mid-majors lie waiting to strike. The #7 BYU Cougars were probably good enough to be on the #5 line this year, especially considering that New Mexico was blessed with a three seed on the other side of the tournament table. They’ve got a bad history in the tournament in recent years, but this should be the year that the Cougs get out of the first round of the dance, as they take on a Florida team that many question whether they belong in the field of 65 or not.

List of Current Odds to Win The West Bracket Can Be Found Below!

The other dangerous mid-major comes out of the Atlantic 10, the #6 Xavier Musketeers. The X-Men have a history of screwing up brackets, as they know what it’s like to get to the Elite 8. Neither the #3 Pittsburgh Panthers nor the #2 Kansas State Wildcats have to be thrilled about the prospects of a second round match with a hungry Cinderella story or a Sweet 16 duel with the other one.

Still, the Orange are the team to beat out West, especially if the injury to F Arinze Onuaku isn’t a serious one. HC Jim Boeheim has a dangerous team that is deep enough to take out any team in America. The road to Indianapolis, as they say, will be a long and winding one, though.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the West Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/17/10):
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Syracuse +160
Kansas State +300
Pittsburgh +800
Butler +1000
BYU +1000
Xavier +1200
Vanderbilt +1400
Florida State +1600
Gonzaga +1800
Minnesota +2000
UTEP +4000
Florida +4000
Murray State +6000
Oakland +15000
North Texas +30000
Vermont +30000

Complete List of Odds to Win The Midwest Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The Midwest Bracket is where the #1 overall seed in the tournament, the Kansas Jayhawks are playing. However, the Selection Committee probably didn’t do Rock Chalk any real favors, as this is clearly the most difficult bracket to be playing in. Look out for all of the superstars in this region (and we’re not even going to mention any Jayhawks!).

The Jayhawks are going to need every bit of their depth to get through this bracket. It’s going to get very difficult, very quickly for KU. The winner of the #8 UNLV/#9 Northern Iowa game is going to be playing with a chip on its shoulder and will be out to prove that the mid-majors can indeed play with the big boys.

If Kansas does make a deep run into March, both the #2 Ohio State Buckeyes and #3 Georgetown Hoyas are going to be waiting for it. That means that the Jayhawks will most likely have to get through either F Evan Turner, the AP National Player of the Year, or C Greg Monroe, who is largely considered the most versatile big man in the game.

However, don’t think that a Sweet 16 clash of the Big Ten and Big East titans is a certainty. The #7 Oklahoma State Cowboys have the man probably most suited to take over this entire tournament on their roster in the form of G James Anderson. Anderson, who averaged over 22 points per game this season, is largely being overlooked. The Cowboys draw the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets out of the #10 hole, who just have to feel fortunate to be in this tournament after needing to play four games in four nights in the ACC Tournament just to make it here.

Complete List of Odds to Win The Midwest Bracket Can Be Found Below!

A prospective #4/#5 match between the Maryland Terrapins and Michigan State Spartans is intriguing as well. What Sparty did in last year’s tournament was remarkable, and virtually the entire cast of characters is back. G Kalin Lucas dominated the March Madness proceedings last year, but he’s going to have a tough time pulling his team through the field of 65 once again.

For the Terps, G Greivis Vasquez is wrapping up a fine collegiate career. There’s nothing that he can’t do on the floor, as he is a general, a scorer, a distributor, and a rebounder all in one body. Ask any of the teams in the ACC that have been dealing with this guy for years. Vasquez can single-handedly take Maryland from a ten point deficit to a five point lead in a matter of minutes.

If you’re looking for an upset in this bracket, there are plenty of double digit seeds that are unlikely conference winners. #12 New Mexico State stole a bid to the dance by winning the WAC, while #13 Houston did the exact same thing in Conference USA. The #11 San Diego State Aztecs are the winners of the very dangerous Mountain West, while #14 Ohio toppled both of the MAC powers, Kent State and Akron, to go dancing.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the Midwest Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/17/10):
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Kansas -140
Ohio State +350
Georgetown +550
Michigan State +1000
Maryland +1300
Tennessee +2000
Oklahoma State +2500
Georgia Tech +4500
UNLV +5000
Northern Iowa +5000
San Diego State +7500
New Mexico State +10000
Houston +10000
Ohio +15000
UC Santa Barbara +30000
Lehigh +30000

List of Current Odds to Win The South Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The South Region is considered arguably the weakest bracket of the four in this year’s tournament. However, that should make for some competitive basketball over the next couple weeks, as there are legitimately a dozen teams that have to feel like they have a chance to go to the Final Four.

We’ll start at the top with #1 Duke Blue Devils, who are arguably the weakest top seed in this field in spite of the fact that they were rated #3 of the four. They’ve got a trio of players that is just as good as any threesome in the country with G Jon Scheyer, G Nolan Smith, and F Kyle Singler. Those three are scoring over 68% of the Dookies’ points this year, and that ratio has done nothing but go up over the course of the season.

Are the Blue Devils vulnerable? Most likely. That could take a toll on the team very early, as the winner of the California/Louisville game in the #8/#9 draw may prove to be a real threat.

There are four very dangerous double digit seeds in this bracket as well. The #10 St. Mary’s Gaels were the WCC winners this season against a Gonzaga team that is always known to cause problems for big schools this time of year. #11 Old Dominion could’ve snagged an at-large bid to the dance without the Colonial’s automatic bid. This is a squad that already has beaten Georgetown in Washington DC this season, so it’s one that can’t be rested upon.

List of Current Odds to Win The South Bracket Can Be Found Below!

Utah State and Siena, the #12 and #13 seeds respectively, were two of the biggest players in the BracketBusters this year. The Aggies knocked off Wichita State, which is probably what put them in the field of 65 as an at-large team. Siena’s loss to Butler most likely is what punished the Saints with this high seeding. However, this is a team with a great history having advanced to the second round of the dance in back-to-back years out of the Metro Atlantic.

#2 Villanova slumped down the stretch, but it was still a great candidate for a #1 seed until the very end of the season. #3 Baylor is accepted as one of the most talented teams in the country that could cause some big hassles for anyone it runs into if it catches fire.

Don’t forget about #5 Texas A&M, who much like the Bears, are going to get the privilege of playing close to home in Houston should either team make it to the Sweet 16.

The #6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish have found a groove playing their “burn” offense, which is designed to slow down the pace of games. The #4 Purdue Boilermakers are going to be the forgotten team in this bracket. HC Matt Painter’s team may not be playing with F Robbie Hummel and was just destroyed by Minnesota in the Big Ten semifinals, but it is still capable of playing like a #1 seed.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the South Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/16/10):
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Duke -105
Villanova +250
Baylor +400
Purdue +1600
Texas A&M +1800
Notre Dame +2000
Louisville +2500
California +3000
Richmond +3500
Utah State +4000
St. Mary’s +5000
Old Dominion +5000
Siena +7500
Sam Houston St. +7500
Robert Morris +25000
Winthrop +30000
Arkansas Pine Bluff +35000

List of Current Odds to Win The East Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The East Bracket is largely considered a wide open bracket. HC John Calipari’s club is the top seed in this region, but with the Big East and Atlantic 10 champs roaming in this conference, there are plenty of other squads that can knock off the top seed.

Assuming that the Kentucky Wildcats can get out of the first round against East Tennessee State, they’ll have to face off against two teams that both have the ability to be very, very dangerous for them. The #8 Texas Longhorns were 17-0 once upon a time in this season before falling off the face of the earth, but there’s still no reason to believe that the Horns can’t be frightening to the top seeds. Don’t count out #9 Wake Forest either, as the Demon Deacons played in the rough and tumble ACC.

Two brackets down, there’s a ton of defense. The fight between the #5 Temple Owls and #12 Cornell Big Red should be a fantastic clash between the nation’s top three-point shooting team and one of the best at defending the long ball. Watching F Ryan Wittman try to compete against a squad that is only allowing 56.1 points per game and letting teams shoot 28.1% from downtown should be fantastic.

The winner will get yet another defensive showcase either against the #4 Wisconsin Badgers, who notoriously have one of the best ‘D’s in the nation or the #13 Wofford Terriers, who held teams to just 61.2 points per game.

The other half of the bracket is littered with a lot of marquee at large teams and the #2 West Virginia Mountaineers, who won the Big East for the first time in school history. Their fellow Big East cohorts, the #6 Marquette Golden Eagles are also in this bracket and could be considered very dangerous.

Watch out for the #3 New Mexico Lobos, who were the regular season Mountain West champions. HC Steve Alford thinks he has a team that can win the entire tournament, and even though the Lobos have to travel a long way if they reach the second week of the dance, they’re certainly still going to be a real threat.

The Pac-10 champions, the Washington Huskies, the Big Sky champs, the Montana Grizzlies, and two other at-large teams, the #7 Clemson Tigers and #10 Missouri Tigers round out this bracket.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the East Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/16/10):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus up to $1000 at BetUS Sportsbook When Using This Link)

Kentucky +120
West Virginia +200
Wisconsin +700
New Mexico +1200
Temple +1600
Marquette +1800
Clemson +2000
Texas +2000
Missouri +2000
Washington +3000
Wake Forest +4000
Cornell +10000
Wofford +15000
Montana +20000
Morgan State +30000
East Tennessee State +30000