March Madness Sweet 16 Betting Preview
After an upset-filled first two rounds, March Madness enters the Sweet 16 with a lot of busted brackets and a lot of bettors licking their wounds.
Entering the Sweet 16, three No. 1 seeds are left standing while four double-digit seeds are still in the tournament. At Bovada Sportsbook, the tournament favorite remains the overall No. 1-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs at +130.
West Region: Gonzaga vs Creighton, USC vs Oregon
In the West Region, Gonzaga will face the No. 5 Creighton Bluejays as a 13.5-point favorite. The Bulldogs are now 28-0 straight up on the season and 14-12-2 against the spread after going 1-1 ATS in their first two tournament games.
Creighton is 3-3 SU and 4-2 ATS in its last six games as an underdog. The Bluejays last faced Gonzaga in 2018 and lost 103-92 as a 6.5-point underdog.
Sticking to the West Region, the other Sweet 16 matchup sees the No. 6 USC Trojans face the No. 7 Oregon Ducks as a 2.5-point favorite.
USC dominated the Kansas Jayhawks 85-51 as a 1.5-point underdog in the Round of 32. Oregon got an early breather when its tournament opener against the VCU Rams was canceled, and in the second round the Ducks breezed past the Ohio Bobcats 77-58 as a 5.5-point favorite.
In February, the Trojans defeated the Ducks 72-58 as a 3.5-point home favorite. In their last seven against Oregon, USC is 5-2 SU and ATS.
East Region: Alabama vs UCLA, Michigan vs Florida State
In the East Region, the No. 11 UCLA Bruins face the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide as a 6.5-point underdog.
UCLA is a solid 9-3 ATS in its last 12 as an underdog. After starting out in the First Four, UCLA is 3-0 ATS in the tournament so far, which includes two wins as an underdog.
Alabama has won eight straight at 5-3 ATS, and when favored the Crimson Tide have won 11 in a row at 6-5 ATS. In the last 10 matchups between a No. 2 and No. 11, the No. 2 is 9-1 SU and 5-4-1 ATS.
In the other East matchup, the No. 1 Michigan Wolverines face the No. 4 Florida State Seminoles as a 2.5-point favorite.
Michigan is 3-4 ATS in its last seven and in the tournament is 17-1 SU and 12-5-1 ATS in the last 18 as a favorite.
Florida State is 2-4-1 ATS in its last seven and when listed as an underdog is 3-5 SU and 4-4 ATS in the last eight. In a No. 1 vs No. 4 matchup, the No. 1 has won eight straight at 6-1-1 ATS.
South Region: Arkansas vs Oral Roberts, Baylor vs Villanova
In the South Region, the giant killer No. 15 Oral Roberts Golden Eagles face the No. 3 Arkansas Razorbacks as an 11.5-point underdog.
Oral Roberts has won six straight ATS and as an underdog is 7-1 ATS in the last eight.
Arkansas is 11-1 SU and 10-2 ATS in its last 12 games.
Back on December 20, Arkansas defeated Oral Roberts 87-76 as a 19.5-point favorite.
In the other South Region matchup, the No. 1 Baylor Bears are 7.5-point favorites vs the No. 5 Villanova Wildcats.
Baylor is 3-6 ATS in its last nine games as a favorite.
Villanova is 3-5 SU and 4-3-1 in its last eight games as an underdog. In a No. 5 vs No. 1 matchup, the top seed is 7-1 SU and 5-3 ATS in the last eight games.
Midwest Region: Loyola Chicago vs Oregon State, Houston vs Syracuse
In the Midwest Region, the No. 8 Loyola Chicago Ramblers are 6.5-point favorites against the No. 12 Oregon State Beavers.
After shocking the No. 1 Illinois Fighting Illini 71-58 as a 7-point underdog, the Ramblers have now won eight straight at 5-3 ATS.
Oregon State has delivered back-to-back upsets in the first two rounds and as an underdog is 11-1 ATS in the last 12.
In our final matchup, the No. 2 Houston Cougars face the No. 11 Syracuse Orange as a 6-point favorite.
Houston has won nine straight at 6-3 ATS.
Syracuse is on a six-game ATS winning streak that includes four wins as the underdog. As an underdog in the tournament, the Orange have also won six straight ATS and eight of their last nine.