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NCAA Tournament Gambling Guide: March. 24 (Round 2, Pt. 1)

Gonzaga v North Carolina

It’s that time. It’s NCAA Tournament time. What better time than to continue to put out some picks and breakdown some games as we all look to get some extra cash in March. We’ve had a decent run so far this year, let’s hope it continues. These will come out different times during the day to split up games. As is tradition I’ll make a pick for every single games. 

Reags Recommendations (58-54-3, 16-23-1 NCAA Tournament)
Tennessee -8
UNC -11
Under 143 in UCF/Duke
Under 146 Buffalo/Texas Tech

No. 10 Iowa vs No. 2 Tennessee (Tennessee -8/155)

Tennessee already had its early round scare against Colgate. I don’t see Tennessee struggling two games in a row. More importantly I can’t see Tennessee struggling to score against Iowa. Tennessee is 19th in the country in 2pt % while Iowa is 306th nationally in defensive 2pt percentage. Expect to see a whole lot of Grant Williams in the midpost and go to work there. The question for Tennessee will always be what defense shows up. They haven’t been as good or consistent on that side of the ball from last year, but we’ve seen them (most notably the Kentucky game in Knoxville) show up and lock teams down.
Pick: Tennessee -8

No. 9 Washington vs No. 1 UNC (UNC -11/148)

I know. I know. The Washington 2-3 is going to be the new Syracuse 2-3 zone in March. I don’t doubt that. What I do doubt is running that zone effectively against UNC. The Tar Heels have way too much shooting and can flash guys like Luke Maye in the middle of the zone from all different points. It’s worth noting that UNC scored 93 against Syracuse. Let’s not forget that while 2-3 zones can slow teams down, it’s also quite difficult to rebound out of it. Not a great recipe against one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country.
Pick: UNC -11

No. 9 UCF vs No. 1 Duke (Duke -13.5/143)

UCF is going to try and murky this game up. They want to take the air out of the ball offensively and limit possessions. Defensively they run that zone, they’ll sag and let Tacko Fall sit in the middle. We know what the scouting report on Duke is. Try to hold Zion Williamson to a respectable number and force them to shoot from the outside. Dare Reddish, Jones and others to beat you from there. That’s what UCF is going to do. Now, we just hope to see Tacko Fall vs Zion at the rim. Between the whole Tacko saying he’s not going to let Zion put him on a highlight tape. Zion showing respect for Tacko. Give me that meeting at the rim.
Pick: Under 143

No. 6 Buffalo vs No. 3 Texas Tech (Texas Tech -3.5/146)

This is by far the best game of the day. This very well could be the best game of the entire second round. First step in this game will be who dictates tempo. Texas Tech wants to slow it down, run an offense and put Jarrett Culver in ball screens. Buffalo wants to run, 3rd in the country in average offensive possession length, get up threes and offensive rebound. The other key is that Buffalo doesn’t turn the ball over. If they can continue to take care of it, they have a good shot to win. However, I’m going to trust Chris Beard and the toughness of Texas Tech.
Pick: Under 146