NCAA Tournament betting tips off on Tuesday
NCAA Tournament betting for 2013 tips off on Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio as the Big Dance begins its slate of play-in games. That leads into the Round of 64 on Thursday and Friday, with March Madness whittling its field down to the Sweet 16. As well, on the NBA betting board this week the Heat look to stay red hot and keep avoiding losses.
It's Middle Tennessee vs. Saint Mary's and Liberty vs. North Carolina A&T in the first two play-in games at the NCAA Tournament on Tuesday night, with the winners of those games advancing to the Round of 64. Middle Tennessee went 28-5 SU and 15-14-1 ATS this season, while Saint Mary's was 27-6 SU and 15-16 ATS; that winner will be a No. 11 seed. Liberty was 15-20 SU and 5-3 ATS on the season, while North Carolina A&T was 19-16 SU and 7-0 ATS; that winner will end up as a No. 16 seed.
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In Wednesday's play-in games it's Boise State vs. La Salle and James Madison vs. Long Island. Boise State was 21-10 SU and 16-11 ATS on the season, and La Salle turned in records of 21-9 SU and 13-13 ATS; the winner of this game will be a No. 13 seed in the NCAA Tournament. James Madison was 20-14 SU and 21-10 ATS this season, and Long Island was 20-13 SU and 4-0 ATS; that winner ends up as a No. 16.
Round of 64 action then starts on Thursday, with Louisville, Kansas, Indiana, and Gonzaga the top seeds in the four brackets. Round of 32 matchups begin on Saturday.
In NBA betting action early this week the spotlight will remain on LeBron James and the streaking Heat, as the Eastern leaders have won 22 games in a row heading into their matchup on Monday against the Boston Celtics. The Heat fell 100-98 in Boston when they last faced the Celtics on January 27, but they won the first meeting of the season between the two teams by a score of 120-107 at home back on October 30. Both those games were OVER results for bettors on the NBA totals at the sportsbooks.
The Heat will then be in Cleveland on Wednesday night, and Miami is 5-0 SU but just 2-3 ATS over their past five games against LeBron's old team. When the Heat and Cavs last met on February 24 Miami won 109-105 but didn't cover the 12-point spread.
Other notable NBA matchups early this week include Denver at Chicago and New York at Utah on Monday, Denver at Oklahoma City on Tuesday, Utah at Houston, Oklahoma City at Memphis, and Golden State at San Antonio on Wednesday, and Portland at Chicago on Thursday. The Bulls are 3-7 ATS in their past 10 against the Trail Blazers.
Finally, the PGA Tour offers up the Arnold Palmer Invitational starting on Thursday this week, with Tiger Woods the defending champion at the event. Woods won this tournament by five strokes over Graeme McDowell for his betting supporters last year.