NCAA Basketball Mid Majors Betting
By By Josh Walfish
Updated date: March 6, 2022
It is the best time of the year as March Madness has officially sprung. There are several conferences that have already handed out their bids, and several more will be clinched in the coming days. But most of the automatic bids will be awarded Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. So we looked at some of the best mid-major leagues in the country to tell you about the most interesting conference tournaments to bet on this year.
Atlantic 10
It is going to be a fun week in Washington D.C. when the Atlantic 10 Tournament takes over Capital One Arena. Davidson won the regular-season title rather comfortably and is the deserved favorite, but the Wildcats have just +330 odds for a reason. There is so much talent at the top end of the A10 this year, especially with several teams battling for at-large bids as well. Dayton and VCU, which tied for second in the league, are both on the bubble right now, but they can erase any doubt by cutting down the nets Sunday. Dayton is the second choice at +360, but VCU has +380 odds as well.
Then there are a pair of teams that expected to compete for the conference crown but never put together enough consistency with St. Bonaventure and Richmond. The Spiders are a major longshot at +950, especially as the sixth seed with a difficult road to the title. However, the Bonnies have arguably the best starting five in the conference and are +550 after being the preseason favorites to win the league. Earning the fourth seed and the critical double-bye is also very helpful for St. Bonaventure’s chances of winning three times in three days.
American
Similar to the Atlantic 10, the American has a chance to send two or three teams to the NCAA Tournament depending upon what happens in its conference tournament. The only sure thing right now is Houston should earn an at-large if it does not take care of business in Fort Worth at -120 odds. Both Memphis and SMU are on the bubble right now and the team that makes the tournament final should have an excellent chance at earning the at-large bid. The Mustangs won both of the meetings this year with the Tigers and are the second seed, but SMU has +650 odds to win the title versus Memphis’ +400. Memphis and SMU account for all three of Houston’s conference losses with the Mustangs splitting with the Cougars and the Tigers sweeping the conference champions.
Conference USA
Most of the attention in Conference USA is focused on the West Division with the two best teams in the league residing there. UAB is the favorite in this tournament at +170 despite finishing two games behind North Texas in the conference standings. The two teams split their regular-season meetings as well, so it is a surprise the Mean Green at +185 are not the favorite. North Texas is the only team in the league with a chance of earning an at-large bid, but it would be a tight call, so it is better for the Mean Green to just win the tournament to secure their spot. The underdog is Middle Tennessee at +1000 as the champion of the East Division. The Blue Raiders did lose to both North Texas and UAB during the regular season, but both of those games were on the road and Middle Tennessee followed up the loss to the Mean Green with 13 wins in the next 14 games.
MAC
Only five teams finished with winning records in MAC play this year, and any one of those teams could end up winning the tournament in Cleveland this week. MAC-tion is alive and well in basketball as well as football with so much at stake for all eight teams that qualified for the tournament. Toledo is the favorite at +170 and has looked like the best team in the league all season long. However, Kent State at +600 might be the best value pick after the Golden Flashes swept the Rockets this season and enters the tournament on a 12-game winning streak. Ohio is listed at +240, but the Bobcats have lost three straight and four of five heading into the tournament with the wrong momentum. However, it is unwise to discount Akron with +700 odds as the Zips ride a five-game winning streak into the tournament.
Mountain West
The Mountain West should put four teams in the NCAA Tournament this year, and any of those four squads could end up cutting down the nets in Las Vegas. Just two games separated Boise State as the regular-season champion from Wyoming as the No. 4 seed, and it should be that razor tight the entire week. The Broncos are the favorites at +280, but no team enters the tournament with more momentum than Colorado State. The Rams are +360 to win the title and have won eight of their last nine games, including sweeping Boise State in that time. San Diego State has won nine of its last 10 games to sit at +360 odds, but just one of those wins came against a team that finished with a winning record in conference play. That just leaves Wyoming at +490, the one team who would definitely secure an at-large bid if it could win the rubber match with Boise State in the semifinals to advance to the final.