March Madness Round Of 32 Best Bets: Tennessee & Murray State Look To Stay Hot

#11 Michigan Vs. #3 Tennessee: Tennessee -5.5 (-115)

Michigan pulled off the 75-63 upset win over Colorado St, and Tennessee took care of business 88-56 against Longwood. Michigan had a shaky season that culminated in a 74-69 loss to Indiana in the Big 10 Tournament. Hunter Dickinson (18.4 PPG) paces Michigan in scoring and provides a security blanket, but I don’t trust their defense. They were one of the worst pick and roll defenses in the nation, and teams had success with their perimeter jump shots. Tennessee has a multitude of elite three-point shooters, including Santiago Vescovi (40.7 3PT%, 7.3 3PA). The Volunteers wield a deadly defense and tend to show up in big games. I think Michigan loses by 10+ points here, so I am ecstatic to get this at a -5.5 spread.

Author: Braxton Reynolds

#7 Murray St. -8.5 (-110) Vs. #15 St. Peter’s

Murray State will be taking on St. Peter’s who dealt Kentucky a massive upset in the first round. Unfortunately for St. Peters, this is where I believe the Cindrella story ends. Murray State and USF were two of my favorite teams heading into this tournament and it is unfortunate they met in the first round as I believe both could have made deep runs. Murray State’s explosive offense will be no match for a St. Peter’s team who got hot against an unprepared UK team. I think Murray St. dominates this matchup and runs up the score winning by 10-20 points with ease, off of the back of efficient offense and causing turnovers.

Author: Matt Amato

#1 Baylor Vs. #8 North Carolina: UNC +5.5 (-110)

It is one thing to beat Norfolk State by 36 points, but it is a completely different thing to beat a formidable No. 9 seed like Marquette by 32 points. That is exactly what happened when North Carolina took the floor in its Round of 64 matchup. If you ignore the loss to Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament Championship, this team has been on absolute fire. The Tar Heels have won seven of their past eight games, with one of those wins coming when they went into Cameron Indoor and crushed the Duke Blue Devils in Coach K’s last game at home; if that does not tell you that this team likes to crash parties, then I don’t know what does.

Author: Andrew Norton

#1 Gonzaga -10.5 (-110) Vs. #9 Memphis

Gonzaga got off to a slow start before pouring it on against Georgia State. Memphis comes in playing well and really since January have picked up their play. Both teams will look to push the pace and I am going to lean with the more experienced and larger backcourt of Gonzaga. Memphis has struggled with turnovers all year long and that will be an issue against a lengthier Gonzaga team. Memphis has also struggled on the boards this season, where we know Gonzaga thrives here as well. The Bulldogs should avoid the slow start this time out and will showcase the experience they have. Despite how good Memphis’ offense has been recently, Gonzaga taking away the three-point line and forcing turnovers is going to make it tough for them to keep up.

Author: Jason Guilbault

March Madness Bracket