First Round NCAA Basketball Tournament Tips
The start of the NCAA Basketball Tournament brings out plenty of bettors who would never think of placing a wager on a regular season game. While many of these bettors strictly play the bracket pools, there are a few who venture over from the NBA betting circle, as well as some who will play only football until the tournament starts.
As a result, you would think that the lines would be titled a bit in favor of the big-name teams, and while that was true for awhile, it doesn't appear to be the case any longer.
From 1985 to 2006, betting against the top five seeds in the first round would have produced a solid 78-59-3 record. Not too bad for something involving so little work. But over the past two years, blindly betting against the top five seeds in the first round would have produced a dismal 11-27 record.
As bettors, we have to be aware the ever-changing sports betting scene, and the top five seeds is just one example. While this isn't an advisement to rush out and bet every one of the top five seeds in their first game this year, it should cause you to stop and ponder before making your bets on opening-round games this year.
As the tournament draws closer, you'll probably see several systems telling you to bet the underdogs in the first round based on their past success. While this was true in previous years, it obviously isn't the case any longer.
Totals
The other area you'll likely see some systems for betting the first round games is in totals, where the unders performed extremely well for a number of years. Just like with the sides, however, totals have come back to earth and despite what you may read, blinding betting the underdogs or unders isn't necessarily a good bet.
Each game needs to be looked at on its own, without blindly putting it into a certain category and taking a certain side or total because of what has happened in the past.
If your handicapping tells you one particular side or total is a good wager, by all means follow your hunches, regardless if it is a play on the underdog or favorite, over or under. Your bankroll will thank you in the end.
