Day 2 of March Madness was highlighted by one crazy finish and several wins by favorites.
We saw No. 2 Iowa State dismantle No. 15 Tennessee State 108-74. No. 5 St. John’s blew out No. 12 Northern Iowa 79-53. Then there was also No. 5 Texas Tech taking care of business in a 20-point win over No. 12 Akron.
These three winners are the teams that I’ve locked in on for my best college basketball bets today as we head to Round 2 of our March Madness predictions.
Find out why I like Iowa State, St. John’s, and Texas Tech in my March Madness best bets.
March Madness Best Bets for Sunday
All college basketball odds used for these March Madness Round 2 predictions are current as of Saturday, March 21, and courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Iowa State -4.5 (-115) vs Kentucky
Iowa State was led by freshman guard Killyan Toure in the first round, where he dropped 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists against Tennessee State.
The Cyclones are one of the best teams in the country, proving they can beat anyone, as evidenced by a two-point loss to No. 1 Arizona on March 13.
This is a team that is sixth overall on Ken Pomeroy’s rankings, highlighted by a fifth-ranked defense. We’re getting a reasonable number of 4.5 points against Kentucky here.
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The Wildcats are fortunate to have gotten through the first round, needing a buzzer-beater to force overtime, where they eventually knocked off Santa Clara.
Kentucky has gone 5-6 in its last 11 games. The Wildcats haven’t exactly been playing well, and I think they’ll be overmatched against the Cyclones.
St. John’s -3.5 (-108) vs Kansas
St. John’s has been red-hot, going 9-1 in its last 10 games, highlighted by an impressive 20-point win against UConn on March 14.
The Red Storm took care of business against Northern Iowa with a balanced effort, with nine players scoring five-plus points.
It’s a matchup of two legendary coaches here: St. John’s Rick Pitino against Kansas’ Bill Self.
- See where these teams sit in the latest March Madness winner odds.
I give the edge to the Red Storm, as the Jayhawks are 5-5 in their last 10 games, including a 22-point blowout loss against Houston on March 13.
Kansas only beat California Baptist by eight points in the first round. The Jayhawks are 58th in offense on Pomeroy’s rankings, which is bad news against an 11th-ranked St. John’s defense.
All we need is a four-point win here, so it’s a reasonable number to ride with St. John’s in this spot.
Texas Tech -1.5 (+100) vs Alabama
Texas Tech came into the tournament with three consecutive losses to TCU, BYU, and Iowa State, but they rebounded nicely with a 20-point win over Akron.
The Red Raiders were led by elite three-point shooting in that game, going 11-for-20 from beyond the arc. They also had five players with 14+ points in that blowout victory.
Alabama also performed well in their 20-point win over Hofstra, led by guard Labaron Philon, who scored 29 points with 8 rebounds and 7 assists.
This should be a high-scoring game, but I give the slight edge to Texas Tech because I wasn’t impressed with Alabama in the SEC Tournament, where they lost in the first round to Ole Miss.
I think the line here is telling, with Texas Tech as a short favorite. I’ll take my chances with the Red Raiders, especially at an appealing price of +100.
