First Round NCAA Tournament Picks Against the Spread
By Jason McIntyre
The NCAA tournament is the best event on the sports calendar – four days of wall-to-wall basketball, followed by six more days of excitement. Last year’s tournament run was incredible, and there’s no chance I’ll be able to duplicate it. The first day I went 13-3-1 and cooled off after that, hitting a speed bump in the Sweet 16 before rallying to dominate the Final 4. Thanks for nothing in the title game, Roy Williams. You know the Tar Heels were going to cover in overtime.
Some of these 1st round lines have moved. Some will move tonight and Thursday morning. Oh well. The picks stand. Good luck.
THURSDAY
Nevada +6 vs Iowa State – MISS, Iowa State won 84-73
Xavier +2 vs Maryland – HIT, Xavier won 76-56
UNC-Wilmington +8.5 vs Virginia – HIT, Virginia won 76-71
Bucknell +14 vs West Virginia – HIT, WVU won 86-80
Middle Tennessee St. +1 vs Minnesota – HIT, MTSU won 81-72
Winthrop +11.5 vs Butler – MISS, Butler won, 76-64
Northwestern +1.5 vs Vanderbilt – HIT, Northwestern won 68-66
Florida State -12 vs Florida Gulf Coast – MISS, FSU won 86-80
Virginia Tech +3 1st half vs Wisconsin – MISS, Wisconsin led 34-30
FRIDAY
Baylor -12 vs New Mexico St. – HIT Baylor won, 91-73
Miami -2 vs Michigan State – MISS Michigan State won 78-58
Rhode Island +1 vs Creighton – HIT, Rhode Island won 84-72
Dayton +6 vs Wichita State – PUSH, Dayton won 64-58.
Seton Hall +1 vs Arkansas – MISS, Arkansas won 77-71
Oklahoma St +2.5 vs Michigan – HIT, Michigan won 92-91
Troy [First Half, +12] vs Duke – MISS, Duke led, 52-38
South Carolina -1.5 vs Marquette – HIT, South Carolina won 93-73