SI Gambling insider Frankie Taddeo reviews the latest NCAA basketball conference betting odds as well as the updated futures market for the National Championship.
Gonzaga and Baylor retained their places as the betting favorites to cut down the nets at Lucas Oil Stadium, but the oddsmakers have made significant changes behind them.
Last week, Baylor became the betting favorite to win the National Championship at DraftKings Sportsbook at odds of +250; surpassing the undefeated Gonzaga Bulldogs at +200. This week, Michigan moved up to the third overall betting choice at odds of +650. They now surpassed the Villanova Wildcats who saw their odds rise to 11/1 - tied with the Ohio State Buckeyes.
In terms of Conference futures, there were three notable changes from last week.
National power Villanova, after being defeated soundly by Creighton 86-70, tumbled from No. 5 to No. 10 in the AP Top-25 and have come back to pack in the Big East betting market odds. The Wildcats, who were prohibitive -235 favorites to cut down the nets at Madison Square Garden, are now +120 to win the Big East Tournament for the fifth time in six years.
Meanwhile, Virginia moved up to No. 7 in the latest AP Top-25 after winning 11 of their last 13 games, but were beaten 81-60 by No. 16 Florida State on Monday. The Seminoles, who have only played twice since January 30, have another big statement game on tap this Saturday when they will face No. 18 Virginia Tech in Tallahassee.
Finally, the Mountain West has a new betting favorite as San Diego State has jumped over Utah State and moved to the top line of the betting market at odds of +145. The Aztecs, who won now reeled off six consecutive wins, find themselves ranked for the first time since the 2010/2011 season at No. 25 in the country at odds of 100/1 to win it all.
Let’s dive in and take a deeper look at the latest tournament odds for several of the biggest conferences in the country according to DraftKings Sportsbook:
ODDS TO WIN 2021 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
Houston -335
SMU +450
Memphis +600
Wichita State +1400
South Florida +2500
Tulsa +3500
Cincinnati +10000
UCF +15000
East Carolina +20000
Temple +20000
Tulane +30000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: The Cougars (17-2 SU, 11-2 AAC), have won 10 of their last 11 games and moved up two spots to No. 6 in the latest AP Top 25. Wichita State and Memphis, on four-game and three-game winning streaks respectively, have closed the gap in the regular season standings in the ACC.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
Florida State +300
Virginia +350
Louisville +375
Virginia Tech +420
North Carolina +575
Clemson +1500
Pittsburgh +2500
Duke +3000
Georgia Tech +4000
Syracuse +5000
Miami +6000
Notre Dame +8000
NC State +10000
Boston College +50000
Wake Forest +100000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: No. 7 Virginia (15-4 SU, 11-2 ACC), has won 11 of their last 13 games and are now the second overall betting choice in the ACC betting market. The conference currently has two other teams ranked in the AP Top 25 with No. 16 Florida State (12-3 SU, 8-2 ACC) and No. 18 Virginia Tech (14-4 SU, 8-3 AAC. The Atlantic Coast Conference is one of the most competitive in the country. However, the oddsmakers believe that the two most likely favorites to emerge victorious next month are the Seminoles and Cavaliers.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 ATLANTIC 10 TOURNAMENT
Saint Louis +180
VCU +300
Richmond +350
St. Bonaventure +350
Davidson +1000
Dayton +1500
Rhode Island +3000
UMASS +4000
Duquesne +10000
George Mason +10000
George Washington +30000
Fordham +35000
St. Joseph’s +50000
La Salle +50000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: The Atlantic 10 still does not have any teams ranked in the AP Top 25 but St. Louis (10-3 SU, 3-2 A-10) has rebounded from a brief skid and won three straight games. St. Louis is still a lukewarm favorite even though VCU (15-4 SU, 8-2 A-10) is the hottest team in the conference on a five-game winning streak. The Rams have seen their odds of 8/1 from last week cut dramatically by oddsmakers down to 3/1 this week to win the Atlantic 10.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 BIG EAST CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
Villanova +120
Creighton +200
UCONN +550
Xavier +600
St. Johns +4500
Providence +5000
Marquette +10000
Butler +20000
Georgetown +20000
Depaul +50000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: Villanova (13-3 SU, 8-2 Big East), fell five spots to No. 10 in the latest AP Top 25 after being upset by Creighton. The Wildcats saw their once prohibitive odds of -230 to win the Big East Tournament loosen to reflect positive odds of +120 at DraftKings Sportsbook. With each passing game in the Big East we are learning that Villanova, winners of four of the last five Big East Tournaments, will have their hands full to make it five of six. Standing in their way are the No. 14 Creighton Bluejays (16-5 SU, 12-4 Big East) who have reeled off three straight victories, including a statement win over the Wildcats last weekend.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
Michigan +250
Ohio State +300
Illinois +425
Wisconsin +450
Iowa +500
Purdue +1500
Minnesota +2000
Indiana +6000
Maryland +10000
Michigan State +10000
Northwestern +10000
Penn State +20000
Nebraska +100000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: The Big Ten conference currently has seven teams ranked in the AP Top 25 with Michigan (14-1 SU, 9-1 Big 10) ranked highest at No. 3, closely followed by No. 4 Ohio State (17-4 SU, 11-3 Big 10). Illinois (15-5 SU, 11-3 Big 10) moves up one spot to No. 5 in the country while the Iowa Hawkeyes (13-6 SU, 7-5 Big 10) moves up four spots to No. 11. The Buckeyes continue to pose the biggest threat to the Wolverines chances at a Big Ten title and oddsmakers have once again sliced their odds of 5/1 seen last week down to 3/1 this week.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 BIG 12 TOURNAMENT
Baylor -250
Texas +575
Oklahoma +900
Texas Tech +900
Kansas +1000
West Virginia +1000
TCU +15000
Kansas State +30000
Iowa State +50000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: Not much has changed at the top of betting board in the Big 12 since No. 2 Baylor (17-0 SU, 9-0 Big 12) was forced to shut down due to COVID-19 and cancel five games on their schedule. The undefeated Bears will return to action next week against Iowa State. The Bears are followed by Oklahoma (13-5 SU, 8-4 Big 12) who moves up three spots to No. 9 after their impressive double-overtime road win over West Virginia. The Texas Longhorns (13-5 SU, 7-4 Big 12) moved up one spot to No. 12 while the Texas Tech Red Raiders (14-6 SU, 6-5 Big 12) dropped eight spots to No. 15 after losing 82-71 at home against West Virginia. After falling out of the Top-25 we now see the Kansas Jayhawks (15-7 SU, 9-5 Big 12) have climbed back in and are being offered at 10/1 odds to win the Big 12.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 MOUNTAIN WEST TOURNAMENT
San Diego State +145
Utah State +175
Boise State +400
Colorado State +470
Nevada +3000
UNLV +3000
Wyoming +5000
Fresno State +10000
New Mexico +30000
San Jose State +30000
Air Force +50000
Frankie Breakdown: Utah State (14-5 SU, 11-2 MW) sits atop the Mountain West with the best record in the conference followed closely by Boise State (16-4 SU, 12-3 MW). The oddsmakers at DraftKings Sportsbook have finally budged from their holding of Utah State as the favorite to win the Mountain West. No. 25 San Diego State (15-4 SU, 9-3 MW), winners of six consecutive games, who we have been backing for several weeks as a team of value, now take over the top betting perch at odds of +145 while cracking the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2010.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 PAC 12 TOURNAMENT
USC +150
UCLA +200
Colorado +400
Oregon +540
Stanford +1500
Arizona State +2500
Utah +3000
Washington State +10000
Oregon State +10000
Washington +50000
California +50000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: The Pac 12 conference is still only represented by one team ranked in the AP Top-25. No. 17 USC (17-3 SU, 11-2 Pac 12), who has won six straight games, were a team we highlighted last month as an intriguing option at odds of 10/1, and we now see them as the favorites at +150 after winning 13 of their last 15 games.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 SEC TOURNAMENT
Alabama +225
Tennessee +300
Missouri +350
LSU +450
Arkansas +650
Florida +1000
Kentucky +5000
Ole Miss +7000
Mississippi State +8000
Georgia +20000
South Carolina +20000
Texas A&M +30000
Vanderbilt +50000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: No. 8 Alabama (17-5 SU, 12-1 SEC), remains the top betting choice in the SEC after beating South Carolina and pummeling Georgia 115-82. No. 19 Tennessee (14-5 SU, 7-5 SEC) comes in as the second overall betting choice in the SEC while Missouri (13-6 SU, 6-6 SEC) drops 10 spots to No. 20 after losing to Mississippi and Arkansas last week. The Tigers also suffered a 80-70 defeat at Georgia on Tuesday as 3-point favorites.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 WEST COAST TOURNAMENT
Gonzaga -3500
BYU +900
San Francisco +1100
Saint Mary’s +1450
Pepperdine +6500
Pacific +40000
Santa Clara +50000
Loyola Marymount +60000
San Diego +70000
Portland +500000
Frankie Whispers Breakdown: The No. 1 overall team in the AP Top 25, the Gonzaga Bulldogs (20-0 SU, 11-0 WCC), are overwhelmingly prohibitive favorites to win the West Coast Conference at odds of -3500. The Bulldogs have won seven of the last eight West Coast titles and it would take the biggest upset of the NCAA season for us to witness any West Coast rival defeating the best team in the country.
ODDS TO WIN 2021 COLLEGE BASKETBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
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