2014 March Madness Bracket Picks: Midwest Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/19/2014

Wichita State, Michigan, Duke and Louisville are four of the best teams in the country and among the favorites to cut down the nets in Dallas at the Final Four. And while the seeding of these four juggernauts has caused plenty of babbling from the bobblehead media this week, the reality is that it matters less what order they are presented in than it does what order they finish in.

2014 March Madness Bracket Picks: West Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/19/2014

Top seed Arizona is a tough, physical, defensive-oriented team. They want to lock people up and get in their faces with a hard-nosed man-to-man. Second-seeded Wisconsin is a team whose offensive flow and execution can carve up opponents. Sure, they can defend. Like Arizona can score. But the Badgers are a soft, skilled team that wants to get hot and hit jumpers for a full 40.

NCAA Tournament Handicapping: Using Futures Odds for March Madness Bracket
by Dave Schwab - 3/19/2014

Time is running out to fill n your bracket for this year’s NCAA Tournament. To help make your picks you can listen to the experts on ESPN go on and on about which teams will advance to this year’s Final Four, you can read through the stat sheets of all 64 teams while handicapping each individual matchup, or you can take my approach to filling out your March Madness bracket by letting the oddsmakers show the way to striking it rich.

Wisconsin Badgers Odds to Win the 2014 NCAA Tournament with Picks and Predictions
by George Monroy - 3/19/2014

The Wisconsin Badgers surprisingly earned a No. 2 seed in the West region after ending the regular season with a loss to Nebraska and then losing in the Big Ten tourney semi-finals against Michigan State. Wisconsin ended the year with a No. 12 ranking in the AP Top 25, yet it had not done enough in the eyes of the selection committee to leapfrog a few teams into a premium position in the tournament.

Virginia Cavaliers Odds to Win the 2014 NCAA Tournament with Picks and Predictions
by George Monroy - 3/19/2014

The Virginia Cavaliers earned a No. 1 seed in the East region after upsetting Duke in the ACC tournament and moving into the Top 3 of the AP rankings. Virginia won only its second conference title in its 60-year history with the ACC and will be looking to advance past the round of 64 for the first time since 2007. The Cavaliers are entering the tournament with the stingiest defense in the nation as they allow the fewest points and rebounds and rank in the Top 65 in three other categories.

2014 March Madness Bracket Picks: East Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/18/2014

The East Regional of the NCAA Tournament could be considered the No Respect Region. Top-seed Virginia was given the No. 1 slot by default, and not many analysts in the country think that the Cavaliers have a realistic shot at winning a national title. The same can be said about Villanova, a team that was seemingly dismissed after their last-second upset loss in the Big East Tournament, despite the fact that only three teams in the nation have beaten the Wildcats this year.

Syracuse Orange Odds to Win the 2014 NCAA Tournament with Picks and Predictions
by George Monroy - 3/18/2014

The Syracuse Orange took a huge tumble down the rankings during the last three weeks of the regular season, and as recently as Feb. 18 they were the No. 1 team in the nation and had sports fans everywhere talking about the possibility of running the table. Unfortunately, five losses in seven games and an early exit from the ACC tournament left the team in the 14th overall spot in the AP rankings and with a No. 3 seed in the South region of the 2014 NCAA Tournament.

2014 March Madness Bracket Picks: South Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/18/2014

I don’t know if any region has as much boom-or-bust potential as the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. This bracket boasts four programs – Florida, Kansas, Ohio State and Syracuse – that have dominated March in recent seasons. Add in a traditional power like UCLA and a traditional spur like VCU, and the South is stacked with proven commodities.

2014 College Basketball National Championship Contenders
by Aaron Smith - 3/18/2014

Selection Sunday is behind us, and March Madness is upon us! It’s the best time of the year for a college basketball fan. Who doesn’t get chills when that theme music comes on and you know it’s time for the first game to start on Thursday afternoon?! Fans all over the country find a way to miss work for those first couple days, and the Madness gets underway.

2014 NCAA Tournament Seed Statistics and Analysis
by Alan Matthews - 3/18/2014

We have three teams on winning streaks of at least 26 games heading into the 2014 NCAA Tournament, including an unbeaten club, yet why does it seem like perhaps the most wide-open Big Dance in years? Would it really shock you if No. 9 Oklahoma State, which has Final Four talent but also had a seven-game losing streak during the season, were to upset No. 1 Arizona in the Round of 32 and win the West Region?

2014 March Madness Predictions for Vulnerable High Seeds
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

Teams earn high seeds because of their work over an entire season. In some cases, what they are capable of at this moment isn’t the same as what earned them that seeding. That could make things difficult for them in the opening weekend of the tournament — especially if they are up against a tough opponent. Here are six March Madness predictions for vulnerable high seeds for 2014 March Madness:

2014 NCAA Tournament Handicapping: Best Value Bets
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

When it comes to March Madness, there are brackets and there is betting, and smart bettors realize that the two things are very different. When you are picking your brackets, you are looking for teams that you think have a good chance to win it all or at least to make a deep run. When you are betting tournament futures, on the other hand, you are looking for teams that could win, but more importantly, you are looking for situations in which the chances of a team winning are better than the odds suggest.

2014 NCAA Tournament Handicapping for Dangerous Lower Seeds
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

It’s not hard to think of lower seeds that have become legends for the damage they have done over the years. There was Gonzaga back in the day. Or George Mason. Davidson. Butler. VCU. Wichita State. The list goes on and on. All of these teams went much further than anyone could have expected, but they were able to do it because they were talented, feisty and lucky — a potent combination at tournament time. The tournament wouldn’t be the tournament without teams like that. Here are my 2014 NCAA Tournament picks for four that could potentially fill that role this year.

NCAA Tournament Facts and Interesting Information
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

There are approximately 147,573,952,589,676,412,928 different possible brackets with a 68-team field. Only one will be correct. Warren Buffett has grabbed a lot of headlines for underwriting a $1 billion prize for a perfect bracket this year, but given the odds against it, it’s the safest bet anyone has ever made. If every person on the planet were to fill out a random bracket, the odds would still be way over a billion to one against a perfect bracket. Buffett hasn’t disclosed how much he is being paid to insure the payout, but he is basically stealing whatever amount it is.

March Madness Bracket Trends: Handicapping No. 1 seeds
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

The brackets are set, and now all we can do is wait for the dance to get started. Counting seconds that never seem to pass. All we can do now is analyze some March Madness bracket trends, handicapping No.1 seeds and their chances of making it to Houston where their seed indicates they belong.

2014 March Madness Handicapping: Possible Sweet 16 Surprises
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

There aren’t more than four people on his planet that really, truly believed that Florida Gulf Coast was capable of making the Sweet 16 last year, yet there they were. And so was No. 13 La Salle. And No 12 Oregon. And No. 9 Wichita State, for that matter. All teams that few expected realistically to make it to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.

2014 March Madness Handicapping: No. 5 vs. No. 12 Seeds
by George Monroy - 3/18/2014

One of the reasons that the NCAA Tournament is such a huge, national event amongst sports and non-sports fans alike is because of the upsets. As much as fans love a dominant winner, rooting for an underdog making an unlikely playoff run is one of the most exciting things in sports. And year in and year out March Madness is one of the best venues for upsets to happen simply because navigating a single-elimination tournament on the way to a championship is the most difficult thing to accomplish in sports.

2014 NCAA Tournament Bracket Advice: Hardest March Madness Draws
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

Not all paths to the Final Four are created equally. Some high seeds are blessed by the college basketball gods, or the selection committee, with a relatively easy path through the tournament. They are clearly better than their opponents, the matchups are reasonable, and they obviously control their own destinies. That doesn’t mean that they will succeed, but they are certainly more likely to.

2014 NIT Bracket Picks and Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 3/18/2014

The NCAA Tournament gets all the glory, but it isn’t the only show in town. The NIT used to matter a whole lot more than it does, but it still provides some great action every year, and there is nothing wrong with basketball at Madison Square Garden. It provides yet more opportunities to bet on great elimination action in March.

Duke Blue Devils Odds to Win 2014 NCAA Tournament with Picks and Predictions
by George Monroy - 3/14/2014

The Duke Blue Devils finished the college basketball regular season as the No. 7 team in the AP Top 25 and third in the ACC standings behind Virginia and Syracuse, even though they were a ranked higher than either squad. Duke lost five conference games, including a matchup against Wake Forest late in the season that pushed the team down the AP rankings from the fourth to the seventh spot.