March Madness Sweet Sixteen Betting Preview

We’re down to the Sweet Sixteen at the NCAA Tournament, and with a number one seed and the March Madness favorite already sent packing the tournament odds are looking a little different.

The Duke Blue Devils were the pre-tournament favorite, but ended up choking against the South Carolina Gamecocks. The new tournament favorite on the March Madness odds at the Bovada sportsbook are the No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks at +475. The No. 1 North Carolina Tar Heels follow them at +500, while the No. 1 Gonzaga Bulldogs and No. 2 Arizona Wildcats share +650 odds.

The lowest steed still standing in the tournament are the No. 11 Xavier Musketeers. In the Sweet Sixteen they’ll face Arizona as a 7.5-point underdog. Xavier has won six straight against the spread and they’re 4-0 ATS in their last four as the underdog. Arizona is no slouch, and has a 5-0-1 ATS mark in its last six. Coincidentally the Musketeers and Wildcats met up in the Sweet Sixteen in 2015 and Arizona won 68-60 as 11.5-point chalk.

Along with the Xavier vs. Arizona matchup the biggest spread in the Sweet Sixteen right now is in the No. 4 Butler Bulldogs vs. North Carolina Tar Heels game. Like Arizona the Tar Heels are a 7.5-point favorite at Bovada. Interestingly, the Bulldogs seem to have the Tar Heels’ number. In two matchups with North Carolina Butler is 2-0 SU and ATS, with both wins coming as the underdog. In their last eight games as an underdog overall, Butler is 7-1 ATS.

If you’re looking for a lower seed listed as the favorite in their matchup you have two options right now. First up, the No. 7 Michigan Wolverines are a 1.5-point favorite vs. the No. 3 Oregon Ducks. The Wolverines are on a seven-game winning streak, during which they are 6-1 ATS. Totals bettors may also be interested to know that Michigan is 8-1 on the OVER in their last nine games.

The other lower seed listed as a favorite in the Sweet Sixteen are the No. 3 UCLA Bruins. They face the No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats as a 1-point favorite. Back in December the Bruins and Wildcats faced off and UCLA rolled to a 97-92 win as an 11-point underdog. UCLA is also 5-1 ATS in their last six versus Kentucky.

However, neither side has been a real money maker for bettors lately. UCLA is 1-4 ATS in their last five and 5-8 ATS in their last 13. Kentucky sports a 5-6-2 ATS record during a 13-game winning streak.