NCAA Tournament East Region Odds: 2 Sleeper Teams To Back

By Dan Kilbridge Mar 14th, 2024 7:22 AM EDT

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Michigan’s Big Ten Tournament run came to an end in a semifinal loss to rival Ohio State, but the Wolverines still own the outright Big Ten Championship. They also did enough during the regular season to secure a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The Wolverines are a slight college basketball betting favorite to win the East Region at +200. Those are the longest odds for any No. 1 seed, with No. 2-seed Alabama not far behind at +400.

Oddsmakers aren’t very high on No. 5 Colorado, giving the Buffaloes +1650 odds. Those are longer odds than No. 7 UConn (+1150) and No. 8 LSU (+1400).

As for March Madness betting, we’re always looking for a few sleepers and longshots that could pull off a surprising upset or two and ride the momentum all the way to the Final Four, giving backers a nice little payday.

OTHER SLEEPERS TO BACK: West Region | South Region | Midwest Region

NCAA Tournament East Region Odds

Team	Odds
1. Michigan	+200
2. Alabama	+400
3. Texas	+700
4. Florida State	+900
5. Colorado	+1650
6. BYU	+2500
7. UConn	+1150
8. LSU	+1400
9. St. Bonaventure	+3000
10. Maryland	+2500
11. Michigan State	+3000
11. UCLA	+3000
12. Georgetown	+4000
13. UNC Greensboro	+8000
14. Abilene Christian	+10000
15. Iona	+10000
16. Mt. St. Mary’s	+15000
16. Texas Southern	+10000

NCAA basketball futures betting odds via DraftKings and current as of publication.

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Top East Region Sleepers

No. 7 UConn

The Huskies were on the NCAA Tournament bubble last month and in danger of missing March Madness for the fourth time in a row. Now they’re one of the hottest teams in the country after winning their last four games regular season games to earn their way to the Big Dance.

UConn won the national championship as a No. 7 seed in 2014 and could certainly go on a similar run this season. Star guard James Bouknight was injured for much of the year but returned last month and immediately righted the ship. The Huskies have covered eight of their last 10 games and enter Saturday’s game against Maryland as a -3 favorite.

CHECK OUT: Latest College Basketball Odds From Top Sportsbooks

This is a balanced team ranked 24th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 25th in adjusted defensive efficiency. We think they now have all the pieces to upset a few contenders in the East and possibly get back to the Final Four at +1150 odds.

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No. 9 St. Bonaventure

The Bonnies have looked good all year at 16-4 overall, and they backed it up with a 74-65 win over VCU in the Atlantic 10 Tournament title game.

St. Bonaventure stands 25th in the KenPom rankings and checks in at 17th in adjusted defensive efficiency. The Bonnies also have a very strong, experienced backcourt led by junior guards Kyle Lofton (14.6 points per game, 5.5 assists per game) and Jaren Holmes (13.6 ppg, 5.4 rebounds per game).

This team really hasn’t waivered all season and won every Atlantic 10 Tournament game by nine points or more. They’re a +1.5 underdog against No. 8-seed LSU Saturday, and we think they’re worth a touch to win the East Region at +3000.

About the Author

Dan Kilbridge

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Handicapper Dan Kilbridge writes about college football, MLB and other sports for Bookies.com after spending three years covering Tiger Woods’ comeback and the PGA for Golfweek.