March Madness Betting Tips
No basketball event offers the level of excitement and intensity that the NCAA Tournament does. 68 of the greatest and luckiest college basketball teams square off in a single-elimination tourney where the lone survivor earns the championship crown. Top-ranked teams fall, big underdogs become heroes, and dreams are realized during the NCAA tourney. Given all of the upsets and drama, it's no wonder why they call it March Madness.
Unfortunately, some bettors get caught up in the madness and lose their minds during this tournament. With so many high-profile games, it's all too tempting to make big bets on contests that one hasn't properly researched. So in order to prevent this from happening, it's very important to be prepared if you're going to bet on the NCAA tournament. This being said, let's discuss a few March Madness betting tips that'll lead to a higher success rate.
Tip #1 - Narrow your Focus in the First and Second Rounds
The NCAA tourney opens with a bang. There are 4 play-in games, 32 first-round games and 16 second-round contests. That's a total of 52 games that people can wager on in a week. Given all of the hysteria that the initial two rounds of the tournament causes, one of the hardest parts for bettors is to avoid the temptation of betting on multiple games.
You can't properly research 10-20 games over the first couple of weekends of March Madness. So a good idea is to focus on the teams that you've watched and/or have bet on during the season. Assuming you haven't paid much attention during the regular college basketball season, you might want to single out 2-4 teams and stick with them throughout the tournament.
Tip #2 - When looking at Stats, pay Attention to Defense and Rebounding
You could waste entire days pouring through statistics on tournament teams. And some of the most successful sports bettors have the time to actually do this. But if you're like the average bettor, you don't have time to analyze every single stat. So while you're skimming over the statistics, take a very good look at both defensive and rebounding numbers.
Now, when it comes to defense, most bettors immediately gravitate towards how many points a team holds the opposition to. But keep in mind that some of the top scoring defenses hold opponents because they play a slower style. So it's even more critical that you hone in on field goal percentage defense. Few aspects are more important than forcing teams to miss shots again and again. Combine this with a good rebounding margin and you have a team that's capable of going pretty far in the tournament.
Tip #3 - Check a Team's Road Record
One of the most glaringly obvious stats is a team's record. But you want to go beyond just checking out some school with a 26-5 record and putting your money on them. Instead, look at how they've performed on the road and what their margin of victory is away from home. Most teams don't play close to home during March Madness, so it's important that they boast a good road record.
Along with this, you'll also want to check out what a team does against their toughest opposition. Squads that continually play tough competition and beat ranked teams (or just really good teams) have shown that they're capable of winning big tournament games.
What we've discussed in this article can get bettors off to a good start during their March Madness wagering experience. However, you'll definitely want to keep looking up tips and improving your chances of making successful wagers.