As the calendar flips to mid-January, that means March Madness is only two months away with Selection Sunday just two months away on March 12 and the tournament’s First Four matchups taking place on March 14-15 before the first round matchups begin on March 16 and 17.
It’s never too early to start preparing for this year’s NCAA Tournament whether it’s for betting purposes or not. Below, we rundown everything you need to know about this year’s NCAA Tournament from where it’s taking place, where you can watch, who the favorites are, mid-majors to watch, and more.
Notably, conference tournaments are set to begin starting on February 27 when the ASUN begins their conference tournament. The conference tournaments will run through March 11 just in time for Selection Sunday on March 12.
Where is this year’s NCAA Tournament taking place?
The 2023 NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament will start off with the First Four games in Dayton as is tradition before the first round matchup games take place across the country from Albany, New York down to Orlando, Florida and as far west as Sacramento (CA). In all, Albany (NY), Columbus (OH), Greensboro (NC), Birmingham (AL), Orlando (FL), Des Moines (IA), Denver (CO), and Sacramento (CA).
As things move into the regionals, games will take place in New York City (NY), Louisville (KY), Kansas City (MO), and Las Vegas (NV). The Final Four will then take place in Houston (TX). It will be the fourth time that Houston has hosted the Final Four, the last coming in 2016 when the Villanova Wildcats defeated North Carolina 77-74 on a buzzer beater by Kris Jenkins. The Space City also hosted the Final Four in 1971 and 2011.
Where can you watch the NCAA Tournament?
As usual, the NCAA Tournament will be televised by CBS and it’s family of networks. Selection Sunday will be televised on CBS, the First Four on TruTV while firt and second round games will be on CBS, TBS, TNT, and TruTV. The Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games will be televised on CBS and TBS while the National Semifinals and Championship games will be CBS.
Who are the favorites as of mid-January?
As the regular season gets closer to the end, three teams have separated themselves from the pack in the Houston Cougars, Kansas Jayhawks, and Purdue Boilermakers. All there teams have combined for a 45-3 record this season, it would be a bit shocking at this juncture if any of those three wouldn’t be a No.1 seed in the NCAA Tournament come March.
Also on their way to high seeds in the tournament include Alabama, Tennessee, UConn, UCLA, Gonzaga, Arizona, and Texas. Kansas State, Iowa State, and Providence are surging teams to watch, as they have been red hot over the last several weeks and could make plenty of noise heading into late January, February, and eventually March.
As of January 13, the favorite to win the tournament on BetMGM is the Houston Cougars at +700. Purdue sits second at +1000 while Kansas and UCLA are not too far behind at +1200. Massachusetts residents can prepare for betting on the NCAA Tournament and more at BetMGM Massachusetts.
Which Mid-Majors could make a surprising run?
One of the best parts of the NCAAA Tournament any year is the Cinderella runs by mid-major programs. So far this season, a few mid-major programs are gearing up for potential runs this month. Technically, Gonzaga would lead the charge here but the Bulldogs have established themselves as one of the country’s top programs under Mark Few, for that we won’t count them. That being said, true mid-major programs who could make Cinderella runs include the College of Charleston, Florida Atlantic, Saint Mary’s, and New Mexico.
NCAA Tournament odds to take advantage of right now:
So who are some of the best odds you could take advantage of right now that could result in a big time profit down the road? At +1400 on BetMGM, Tennessee is an intriguing pick, the Volunteers have been dominant for most of the season and are 14-2 this season despite a somewhat difficult schedule. We talked about Kansas State and Iowa State above as teams making pushes up the rankings at +6600, both are highly intriguing potential picks as well. UConn at +1400, Gonzaga at +1600, Baylor at +2200, and Arkansas at +2200 are all teams and odds to consider as well when looking long term.