It’s the end of January. The snow is in full force, it’s dark all the time, and college basketball is HEATING UP. In a few days, it will be February, which means next month it will be March – the most glorious word in the English Dictionary for college basketball fans.
The tournament will look different this year than it has in years past. But the fact of the matter is that, as it stands today, an NCAA tournament will be played. And the magic of March Madness will soon be returning to our homes.
Listen, we’ve all seen enough tournaments to know that there is no formula for betting on them. Crazy things happen year after year and we’re all left wondering how our brackets are busted within four hours of the first tip.
Personally, I think the most money is made betting on individual matchups and totals once things kick-off. However, while they are tough bets to hit, you can get some very juicy value right now on teams to win it all or to make the Final Four.
Want to throw a few darts? I’ll share some of the NCAA Tournament futures picks I think have the most value as we head into the final stretch of the season. It’s always nice to place these kinds of bets, sort of forget about them, and realize you may have a winner on your hands in a few weeks. Let’s all enjoy that together.
2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Champions Picks
I’m not breaking any news with this statement, but I’ll say it anyway – It’s incredibly difficult to win an NCAA Championship. Winning six straight games on the biggest college basketball stage is an extremely daunting task. And with incredibly daunting tasks come long-shot odds. If one of these NCAA Tournament futures picks hits, it pays for all the others and then some hopefully. In this article, I’ll look at a few teams that will pay dividends if they hit, so sorry Baylor and Gonzaga, I’ll take a pass on your current odds.
I mentioned earlier about forgetting I make some of these bets as the season goes on. While that is true, I do always make sure to refamiliarize myself with what I have once the tournament gets started. It’s always good to know your position on futures bets because, as things progress, there could be great opportunities to hedge your bets and make some real cash. Took a flyer on a 60/1 team that’s headed to the Final Four? You have a whole world of hedging opportunity in front of you.
Here are a few NCAA Tournament Futures picks I like as we head into February.
Houston Cougars +2000
I always find myself liking Houston, dating back to the Rob Gray era. They are a team that’s consistently slept on because they don’t play in a major conference, but they can always do some damage. This year is no different. They are currently the top-ranked defensive team in the country, allowing just 56.5 points per game.
The old cliché is that defense wins championships, and while that isn’t always true, being great defensively gives you a great shot to win any college basketball game. There is absolutely value in betting on the best defensive team in college hoops at 20/1. They currently sit at 14-1, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they headed into March with just that one loss on their record.
Virginia Cavaliers +2000
We’ll stick with the defensive theme here and take a look at Virginia. With the same odds to cut down the nets as Houston, I think there is value here. They are never the sexiest pick, but Tony Bennett has proven that his teams can get things done. And they are a team I wouldn’t want to face in a tournament game.
Just a few spots behind Houston, Virginia is 5th in the NCAA in defense and can squeeze the life out of their opponents. They dropped an easy one to San Francisco in their second game of the season while they were still working the kinks out. And their only other loss of the season is to Gonzaga. They’ve been on a heater ever since, and I think we’re getting good value here at +2000. If I had to guess, these odds won’t look quite as nice by the time the tournament rolls around.
Texas Longhorns +1400
Perhaps I’m biased because I watched them absolutely destroy my Indiana Hoosiers, but I said it while that game was happening on December 1st, and I feel the same way now – this team is for real. They are balanced on both sides of the floor and have a few different guys who can light it up each night.
They rebound the ball very well (the 16th-best rebounding team in the country) and can limit offenses from playing their style of play. And they allow just 8.1 assists per game to opponents, which is crazy and is also good for second-best in the NCAA. They only have three losses so far this season. And they have all come by four points or less and were all to legitimate teams.
This is a scrappy team that you’ll find yourself happy to be rooting for as the tournament rolls on. Take a shot on them at 14/1.
LSU Tigers +5500
Sometimes it’s best to roll the dice on a team that can just score. And this year, that’s LSU. Tied for 8th in the country in PPG, the Tigers are led by Cameron Thomas, who is dropping over 22 PPG, and not far behind is Trendon Watford at over 18 PPG. They can drop bombs on you at a moment’s notice and put games instantly out of reach.
Like many great offensive teams, they severely lack a defensive presence. But in college basketball, that doesn’t always matter in the right matchup. If you can keep up with a team punch-for-punch offensively, you can compete against just about anyone. Do I really think LSU is cutting down the nets when this is all said and done? No, probably not. But I could see them making a sneaky run and hedging out somewhere with a 55/1 ticket in my hand.
Drake Bulldogs +8500
Stop laughing! This Drake team is for real. If I told you there was a team you could bet on at 85/1 odds that ranked 10th in the country in points allowed per game, 20th in the country in points scored per game, 4th in the country in average scoring margin, and 5th in the country in three-point and shooting percentage, is that something you might be interested in? Yep, same here.
I get it, they are playing schools you may not have heard of, but sometimes numbers don’t lie. They are just straight up getting it done. They are the exact team that will be drooled over as a sleeper once the bracket gets released. So why not take advantage of it now? At the very least, I think they are worth a bet to make the Final Four at +1600, but personally, I think the move is to bet them to win it all and try to hedge as they win a few games.
