NCAA Men's Tournament Odds: Latest line movements for the Men's Sweet 16

The over-riding storyline so far in the March Madness NCAA men’s college basketball tournament has been how relatively smooth everything has gone. 

As we head into the Sweet 16, most of the higher-seeded regional semi-finalists who were supposed to be there are there. Remember last year? No teams seeded better than No. 4 made it to the Final Four. 

That was pandemonium.

The Sweet 16 begins tonight with four games: 

• (6) Clemson vs. (2) Arizona (7:09 p.m. ET)
• (5) San Diego State vs. (1) UConn (7:39 p.m. ET)
• (4) Alabama vs. (1) North Carolina (9:39 p.m. ET)
• (3) Illinois vs. (2) Iowa State (10:09 p.m. ET)

Full TV coverage in Canada is on TSN.

That late game might be the most interesting if you only have so much time to watch. The Blue Jays open their 2024 MLB season at 4 p.m. so it’s a busy day on the sports-watching calendar.

Illinois has the best offensive rating in the nation, while Iowa State has the best defensive rating – elite when it comes to forcing steals, and ball pressure.

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There’s also the rematch of last year’s championship game - San Diego State vs. UConn. The Huskies, the No. 1 seed coming into the tournament, won by an average of 28 points over two games. 

San Diego State has an opportunity to avenge last year’s championship game loss. UConn has a formidable defence, though, and is paced on offence by Tristen Newton. The Aztecs are led there by Jaedon LeDee (21.5 points per game).

Sports betting insights from a few of the books reveal some interesting narratives this morning and might help sway where you put your money.

At BetMGM: Most-bet (tickets) Sweet 16 games are Alabama-North Carolina, San Diego-UConn then Clemson-Arizona. 

Most bet (tickets) teams are North Carolina -4.5, UConn -11.5, Clemson +7.5. Most bet (handle) teams are UConn -11.5, North Carolina -4.5, then Clemson +7.5.
Most bet (tickets) Over are San Diego-UConn (136.5), while most bet (tickets) Under is Alabama-North Carolina 173.5.

 The majority of bets are on the Over in all other games.

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And if you’re looking at underdogs – most bet (tickets) to win are NC State (3.30), Illinois (2.00) and Clemson (3.50).

In terms of line movement (First Four to Sweet 16), UConn (4.50 to 3.00), Houston (7.00 to 6.00) and North Carolina (14.00 to 11.00) have led the way at BetMGM.
At DraftKings, UConn is the most bet team by handle to win the title, followed by Purdue, North Carolina, Arizona and Illinois.

 By bets, it’s UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, North Carolina State, and Arizona.

And on the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament betting front, the biggest line movement (opening, current) at BetMGM has been Purdue’s Zach Edey (7.75 to +7.00), North Carolina’s RJ Davis (19.00 to 17.00), and NC State’s DJ Burns Jr. (91.00 to 151.00), with Edey being the most popular choice in tickets (21.8%) and handle (29.8%).