(USA TODAY Sports)`After securing only four wins on the first day of the NCAA tournament, lower seeds inspired bracket chaos on Friday with eight wins. 16 out of 32 teams will play today — hoping to punch a ticket to the Sweet 16. Here’s the sports betting recap from Friday and a look ahead to today’s madness.
Underdogs Prevail
Aside from eight tournament victories on Friday, underdogs did a number in against the number. Underdogs went 12-4 ATS on Friday, with eight teams winning outright to move on to Sunday. Most notably, 11-seeded Ohio State upset Iowa State, UC-Irvine upset a 4-seed in Kansas State as a 4.5-point underdog, and Liberty (12) as a 6.5-point underdog upset Mississippi State for the school’s first NCAA tournament victory.
Elsewhere, Oregon (12) made a statement against Wisconsin. The Ducks, 2-point underdogs, were impressive in the 72-54 victory — holding Wisconsin to 33% from the field while going 28/51 for 55% themselves. Kenny Wooten shined with four amazing blocks and a few jaw-dropping alley-oop catches from out of nowhere. Oregon moves on to play UC-Irvine on Sunday.
High Seeds Shine
Despite going 2-4 ATS, all of the 1, 2, and 3 seeds from Friday moved on to Sunday with minimal stress. Three-seeds, Texas Tech (-12.5) against Northern Kentucky, and Houston (-13) against Georgia State, showed no signs of nerves winning 72-57 and 84-55 respectively, both covering the spread. North Carolina (-22) started slowly against Iona and actually trailed by 6 at halftime, dropping the in-game line to -10.5, but the 1-seeded Tar Heels scored 55 second-half points to win 88-73. Tennessee managed to hold off 15-seeded Colgate 77-70 and Virginia put together a dominant second half to ward off their tournament demons — beating Gardner-Webb 71-56. Lastly, there was Zion…
Williamson impressed with 25 points in 30 minutes while teammate R.J. Barrett posted a 26-14 double-double in a 85-62 victory. The 1-16 battle stayed close at until halftime until the freshmen duo put on a show in the second half — leading Duke to 54 points in the second period. The top-seed looks poised to go deep in the tournament.
The Saturday Sixteen
Sixteen teams play on Saturday hoping to advance to next weekend’s Sweet 16 and keep championship dreams alive. LSU meets Maryland as a 2.5-point favorite in a 3-6 matchup. Maryland will need to improve their efforts after a near-upset loss to Belmont in the opening round.
Two-seeded Kentucky meets mid-major darling Wofford at 2:40 PM EST with Kentucky set as a five-point favorite. Wofford hopes to keep a 21-game winning streak alive after defeating Seton Hall in the first round.
Another two-seed — Michigan — square off with ten-seeded Florida as a 6.5 favorite after Florida upended Nevada in the first round. Meanwhile, four-seeded Florida State meets Ja Morant and the Murray State Racers. While FSU is a 4.5-point favorite, everyone is talking about Morant and his brilliant, triple-double performance against Marquette in the opening round. A bona fide top-five NBA draft pick, Morant looks to cement his legacy with a trip to the Sweet 16.
Top-seeded Gonzaga is a lofty 14-point favorite opposing Baylor this evening while two-seeded Michigan State meets Minnesota as a double-digit favorite. Minnesota opened the tournament with an impressive 86-76 victory over Louisville but will certainly be tested by the Spartans and their fiery coach.
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Rounding out the evening, Purdue meets Villanova in a 3-6 matchup. A 3.5-point favorite, down from 4 or 4.5., Purdue dominated Old Dominion in the first round 61-48 while Villanova survived against popular Cinderella-candidate, St. Mary’s 61-57. Purdue looks to make it three straight trips to the Sweet 16 but certainly will be tested by the defending champs.
Finally, after barely holding on to a victory in the first round against New Mexico State, Auburn is favored by two points versus Kansas at FanDuel Sportsbook despite holding the lesser seed. After thumping Northeastern, Kansas — a four seed — will look to stymie the outside shooting of the fifth-seeded Tigers.
Quick Links
Don’t forget to check out Casale’s NCAA Tournament breakdown.
Read Matt Schitto’s mid-day roundup from Friday live from Atlantic City sportsbooks.
Looking for college hoops podcasts? Here’s your playlist for the big dance.
Follow @RGSportsBetting on Twitter — we’ll be covering the tournament from various Atlantic City, N.J. sportsbooks.