March Madness Opening Odds
(The Spread) – Only the elite are alive now in the NCAA Tournament as the Elite Eight kicks off today with an exciting doubleheader.
View Current College Basketball Odds
Tipping off first is a matchup between No. 2 seed Florida (29-7) and eighth-seeded Butler (26-9) which tips off at 4:30PM EST. Florida advanced to the Elite Eight via an 83-74 victory in overtime over Brigham Young on Thursday. Butler advanced with a gritty 61-54 win against Wisconsin.
Oddsmakers from online sports book Sportsbook.com have put Florida as a 3.5-point favorites, while the over-under is set at 132. According to the latest college basketball trends, the Gators are 3-0-1against the spread in their last four Saturday games and 6-0 ATS in their last six non-conference games. Butler is 6-0 ATS in their last six NCAA Tournament games as an underdog.
Butler will need a strong effort out of forward Matt Howard (16.8 points per game), while Florida’s Erving Walker (14.8 ppg) is a sparkplug for the Gators.
Next up on the schedule is third-seeded Connecticut (29-9) will square off with fifth-seeded Arizona (30-7). Connecticut topped San Diego State 74-67 Thursday in the Sweet 16, while Arizona used a second-half surge to run past No. 1 seed Duke 93-77.
Trends show that Arizona is 0-5 ATS in the last five meetings between the two schools. The Huskies are 4-0 ATS in their last four games as a favorite, while the Wildcats are 4-0 ATS in their last four games as an underdog.
Saturday March Madness Opening Odds & Totals
513 Butler +3.5 (132)
514 Florida -3.5
515 Arizona +3 (145)
516 Connecticut -3
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