College basketball picks – field is suddenly narrowing
As we move closer to March Madness odds, college basketball picks are being narrowed down. After a regular season of action, we now have a better gauge for who is real and who is pretending. More importantly, we now know who is healthy enough to win it all. Those who bet sports have watched the college basketball futures for the NCAA tournament all season long and, even though North Carolina has been through its ups and downs, it is still the favorite according to sports book odds.
College basketball picks: injuries playing a big role down the stretch
- Notre Dame has completely flopped
- Marquette without Dominic James
- UConn will miss Jerome Dyson
Some people included Notre Dame in their college basketball picks to win it all, but the school has fallen off the face of the earth. The Fighting Irish started the season ranked in the Top-10 but finished barely over .500 in the regular season.
Another popular team among college basketball picks was the Texas Longhorns, who were ranked seventh in the preseason polls. They’ll still be in the Tournament but their odds to win have dropped significantly. The Longhorns, who were the favorites in the Big 12, finished behind Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri in the conference.
Both the Miami Hurricanes and the USC Trojans were sleeper college basketball picks early in the season as they were both ranked 17th and 18th in the preseason poll, respectively. Now both teams are in the middle of the pack in their conference and neither will finish above .500 in conference play.
Marquette, the team that was ranked just in front of Miami and USC in the preseason poll, is still ranked in the Top 25 but its situation has changed drastically. Those who bet sports should be careful using Marquette as one of their college basketball picks for the NCAA Tournament; the Golden Eagles will be without one of their best players the rest of the season.
Senior guard and captain Dominic James will miss the rest of the season, which is a huge blow to a team that was already thin on depth. That likely takes Marquette out of the running for the Championship.
The highly ranked Connecticut Huskies also have a key injury to deal with, which has led some people to shy away from them when it comes to college basketball picks. The Huskies will be without leading scorer Jerome Dyson for the rest of the season, which definitely leaves some big shoes to fill. Dyson isn’t the team leader, but he was obviously a key cog and that’s why people making their college basketball picks are steering away from UConn. The Huskies are short on depth now and, while it hasn’t been a noticeable problem so far, it’s likely that it will become an issue in the postseason.
The NCAA basketball odds have clearly changed since the beginning of the season. Now that we’ve seen how teams look on the court instead of on paper, and we’ve factored in injuries, we have a clearer picture of who is capable to win the Championship.
WASHINGTON’S PRE-TOURNAMENT PICK: That being said, our pick remains the same. North Carolina has still looked like the most complete team all-around and therefore is my top selection for the college basketball picks for the tournament.
For more insight on the NCAA tournament, visit BetOnline.com’s Betting Edge daily. Also, get into the madness with our March Mayhem contest.
Washington Tucker was practically raised at Rucker Park. Though a freak knee injury cost him a major college basketball scholarship, his “sixth-sense” on the hardwood has translated into a spectacular career in basketball handicapping. Email Comments@BetOnline.com.
