Sports betting

March Madness Betting, College Basketball Betting, March Madness Gambling

by SPORTSBETTING.COM staff | March 4 2009

There was once a tale of an old groundhog that poked his head out the hole in early February in search of a shadow. The results were said to offer insight as to how much more winter was left in store and while odds were occasionally listed on the shadow prop, betting options were generally quite limited.

In dire need of a more exciting way to spruce up the month, college basketball fans soon discovered futures betting for the up and coming March Madness tournament and suddenly, February took on a whole new meaning.

The March Madness tournament, just around the corner, is one of the busiest times in the betting world as everyone from hardcore hoopsters to casual fans alike in search of big winnings all come rushing out of the hardwood. Soon the online chatter at sports forums will be dominated by March Madness betting talk.

March Madness pools where you breakdown the brackets and try to map out the road to the Final Four in advance will start to surface. And isn't it almost that time of year to make the annual call to your cousin at Notre Dame to try and dig up some insider news on rivalries that could lead to a huge profit?

In anticipation of the NCAA tournament, many online sports betting operators have already posted odds on over 100 teams to win the final game in Detroit on April 6 and the board is beginning to light up as players with predictions on long shots, favorites and every dark horse in-between look to get in on the early action.

One of the most important elements to betting on March Madness can be getting on top of the game before the madness begins. High profile teams with a history of competing at the national level such as Oklahoma, North Carolina and No. 1 ranked University of Connecticut are consistently rated as the heavy favs when the Big Dance begins, but watching how these teams prepare—or more so how their opponents play, can offer a big edge towards picking against the spread when the pressure's on.

It's important to research how to win your March Madness pool or your March Madness bracket.

Upsets are the norm in the early rounds of the tournament and when making March Madness picks it pays to know how the underdogs have performed in recent matchups that could already have been considered "must win" games as the smaller conference teams bid for a spot in the tournament.

Straight-up winning and losing streaks at this time of year can also be used as a good measure to how a team might perform in the spotlight and in the meantime, riding a hot squad with points in the games leading up to March is an excellent way to get a head start before the real fun even begins.

The opportunities for betting on college basketball can seem unlimited when March Madness gets into full swing and it's never too soon to put together a gameplan on how to make the most of the tournament. Sorting through the list of teams at online sports books and circling a handful that standout right now is a good place to start.

Look at the top teams and chalk out your picks as the ones you see making a run. March Madness odds are available. Duke is primed for a shot at the title this year and getting in right now on the Blue Devils at 8-to-1 is certainly worth some consideration.

Or if you have a gut feeling on a team like Marquette who has been perfect in league play this year, notching wins against Notre Dame, Georgetown and Villanova along the way, it could be a strong value play to take the Golden Eagles at 30-to-1 and see where it goes. Hedging opportunities where the option to lock up a profit is always a nice problem to be faced with!

March Madness lines will continue to roll out as the NCAA tournament brackets take shape and getting in the game is easy with the right book.

Besides, betting basketball is just so much more fun than playing that groundhog prop.

Enjoy the build up and getting your March Madness preparation done as the tournament gets closer.

Online sportsbooks have all the lines up.