Ryan Connors of Landof10.com offered his predictions for the 2018 NCAA Men's College Basketball Tournament First Round upsets and Gambling911.com will look to counter with the sports bettors in mind.
South Dakata State (+8) - From Ryan Connors of Landof10.com: "South Dakota State shoots threes well and has a superb star in Mike Daum, so I like the Jackrabbits over Ohio State".
Our observation is that the College Basketball Power Ratings suggest a line of -7, a sign that the line has been shaded a bit here.
South Dakota State's defense was not always up to par this season. They surrendered 98 points to Kansas, 95 to Wichita State, and 112 to Colorado this season.
They went 19-9 Against The Spread.
But if ever there were going to be an upset, this might be it.
The Buckeyes' starting five features four double-digit scorers. They might not have enough fire power to survive even against South Dakota State however.
New Mexico State (+4.5) From Ryan Connors: "I like New Mexico State over Clemson because both teams have outstanding defenses, and upsets can be born out of low-scoring games."
This is one of the bigger concensus picks to upset the favorite Clemson and shatter many a bracket.
From the New York Times: The Tigers played an extremely difficult Atlantic Coast Conference schedule. The problem is, they went 4-8 against A.C.C. teams that made the N.C.A.A. tournament. New Mexico State, meanwhile, is a solid mid-major that beat New Mexico twice as well as Miami and Davidson before winning the Western Athletic Conference championship. And the San Diego location makes this a far easier trip for the Aggies.
The Aggies are one of the nations best rebounding teams.
This looks to be one of the more likely bracket busters for March Madness 2018.
Loyola Chicago (+1.5) - From Ryan Connors: "I like Loyola Chicago because I’m totally buying into the hype of a team with a solid defense that can also shoot the lights out (13th in 3-point percentage, eighth in effective field goal percentage)."
St. Bonaventure (+3) - From Ryan Connors: "I like St. Bonaventure to beat UCLA in the First Four and then Florida in the First Round for reasons I can’t explain."
- Don Shapiro, Gambling911.com
