It’s the savvy college basketball bettor who will save room for NCAAB odds action over the Thanksgiving weekend to help prepare for the long road to March Madness.
The holiday season officially begins next week when homes all across the United States celebrate Thanksgiving. There will be turkey and dressing, grandma’s mashed potatoes, Aunt Edna’s green bean casserole and, of course, pumpkin pie.
Next week will also be celebrated by college hoops bettors who sink their collective teeth into several tournaments, many of which give us our first taste of brackets. What we learn could go a long way to turning a profit on college basketball futures come next March.
UConn Headlines Maui Invitational
Dates: Nov. 25-27, Maui, HI
1st-Rd Matchups: Connecticut vs. Memphis; Colorado vs. Michigan State; Auburn vs. Iowa State; Dayton vs. North Carolina
Notes: If we think of the Rose Bowl as the Granddaddy of Them All on the gridiron, then the Maui Invitational qualifies as the hardwood equivalent as far as Feast Week college hoops tourneys. This year marks the Maui’s 40th anniversary, and it does so with a delicious bracket.
The lineup begins with 2-time defending champ Connecticut, and the stage is set for the Huskies to meet North Carolina in the finals.
We’ll have to wait and see where top sportsbooks set the numbers for the 1st-round matchups, but Huskies -8 sounds about right for UConn-Memphis. The last time they met was 2020 when they both resided in the AAC, splitting their two contests with the Tigers covering both.
In the other Day 1 matchups, let’s look for Michigan State -2½ over Colorado, Auburn -4½ against Iowa State and North Carolina -7 vs. Dayton.
If the top 4 seeds advance, it sets up a pair of solid 2nd-round games between UConn-Michigan State and Auburn-UNC. Just taking in the four head coaches – Dan Hurley vs. Tom Izzo and Bruce Pearl vs. Hubert Davis – is intriguing enough.
Assuming top draws do make the finals, it will be the Tar Heels looking for revenge after the Huskies posted an 87-76 win as 6-point chalk last December in the Jimmy V Classic played at Madison Square Garden.
Who else can’t wait for the Maui Invitational next week? 🏀🐏 pic.twitter.com/D88gzxtPQP
— Great Day Tar Heel (@GreatDayTarHeel) November 18, 2024
Zags & ‘Cats Top Battle 4 Atlantis Field
Dates: Nov. 27-29, Paradise Island, Bahamas
1st-Rd Matchups: Louisville vs. Indiana; West Virginia vs. Gonzaga; Oklahoma vs. Providence; Davidson vs. Arizona
Notes: Battle 4 Atlantis might take a backseat to the Maui Invitational in terms of notoriety, but it certainly doesn’t take a backseat this year as far as the caliber of programs participating.
What the Bad Boy Mower sponsors are hoping for is a finals pairing between Gonzaga and Arizona, though the Bulldogs and Wildcats each have work to do to make that happen.
In the opening round, projected NCAAB odds are Indiana -7½ against Louisville to tip off the tournament. The Hoosiers and Cardinals met a year ago in the Empire Classic played at MSG, and Indiana scored a 74-66 decision that fell right on a similar spread.
Gonzaga should be 10-point chalk in its battle with West Virginia, the first meeting since the 2020 Jimmy V when the Bulldogs failed to cover in an 87-82 final.
Oklahoma is -3 against Providence in the first meeting between the Sooners and Friars since the 1991 NIT quarterfinals, won by OU. Arizona should be laying 10½-11 against Davidson in just the second meeting between those schools, the first a Wildcat romp in December 2002.
Should the Bulldogs and Wildcats collide in the finals, Arizona holds a 6-4 lead in the series but Gonzaga has won the last three, the most recent played in Tucson almost five years ago.
The official bracket for the 2024 @badboymowers Battle 4 Atlantis Men’s Tournament is here!
Join us in November at @atlantisbahamas & on the networks of @espn as @ArizonaMBB, @DavidsonMBB, @ZagMBB, @IndianaMBB, @LouisvilleMBB, @OU_MBBall, @PCFriarsmbb, @WVUhoops compete! pic.twitter.com/hMzRwtgc7x— Battle 4 Atlantis (@B4AOfficial) August 21, 2024
Purdue Top Pick in Children’s Hospital Event
Dates: Nov. 28-29, San Diego, CA
1st-Rd Matchups: Purdue vs. NC State; BYU vs. Mississippi
Notes: In just its second year, the Rady Children’s Invitational is already making strides moving up on the billing for Feast Week tournaments by coaxing solid programs. If there’s one issue I have with the event, it’s that there are a very limited number of tickets made available to the public, which tends to hold down the intensity of having a full house of rabid fans for the teams present.
This year’s 4-team bracket is interesting since it finds a Purdue Boilermakers team currently leading the NCAAB futures to win the Big Ten joined by a trio of teams – NC State, BYU and Mississippi – that are in the middle of the odds for their respective conferences.
In a rematch from last season’s Final Four, seeing the Boilermakers and Wolfpack affords a little nostalgia for those of us who miss the old Big Ten-ACC Challenge that the almighty dollar wrecked. Look for Purdue to be laying 8-8½.
The Boilermakers ended NC State’s magical run at the dance with a 63-50 win in the Final Four, leading wire-to-wire to cover a 9½-point spread.
Brigham Young and Ole Miss will open with the Cougars laying 2½-3. The two sides have met just once before, at the 2015 First Four in a battle of 11-seeds. The Rebels overcame a 17-point halftime deficit to win a 94-90 shootout as 3-point favorites.
Next week is #RadyChildrensInvitational week! Watch @PackMensBball, @BoilerBall, @OleMissMBB, and @BYUMBB before they make their way to San Diego and go head-to-head with each other! pic.twitter.com/IEuJ6iVnXo
— Rady Children’s Invitational (@RCISanDiego) November 18, 2024
