It's that time of year already and the March Madness 2009 previews are starting to be released! Online sports betting handicappers are ahead of the game and are beginning to study the NCAA College Backetball Favorites and fill in their early bracket picks and predict who will be slotted where, and who is on the bubble.
The North Carolina Tar Heels started the season as the top team and who most picked at a number one seed. But their early losses have pulled them down the rankings, but not too far down as they should still be the number 2 seed. There could be an upset and a loss by any of these teams; Duke, Wake Forest, Connecticut or Pittsburgh - they will likely be a No. 2 seed, and likely one of the hottest number 2 seeds of the decade!
Duke has always been in the hunt and most people who bet on sports perceived them to be solid, but not a number 1 or number 2 pick. But last year and in 2009, Duke climbed to No. 1 in the nation with wins against Top 10 teams like Purdue, Georgetown and Xavier.
Online sports betting wise guys are also going to pick take Wake Forest in their bracket predictions after the big win against Blue Devils and are playing to win in the ACC. In past March Madness tournaments, the ACC has been Duke, North Carolina and also ran! Now Wake - surprisingly - has made that couple into a crowd.
The Big East has a lot of attention this year with Marquette, Louisville, Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Villanova and Syracuse figure to be in the NCAA Tournament. Hard to believe but Georgetown and Notre Dame will likely not make the big dance in 2009.
The Pac 10 has not lived up to high expectations this year. UCLA, who was supposed to be a powerhouse, has let down online sports betting handicappers a few times this season and doesn't look to be a real tournament threat. They have a young squad, lots of freshmen, who probably can’t take them to the big dance.
The same is true for USC, who was looking to rely on freshmen super star DeMarr DeRozan, but he hasn’t produced as they had hoped. The one real power player in the Pac 10 is Washington State, but they don't figure to be much of a threat to the ACC or Big East powerhouses.
While the Pac 10 is soft, the SEC is even worse. In college football, nobody wants to face any SEC teams no matter what the situation. But in college basketball, the situation could not be more opposite. Florida, Kentucky and LSU headline the conference but nobody will really take them serious come Tournament time.
Gamblers who bet sports are always looking for mid-majors who have good value and Butler, Xavier and St. Mary's fall in that category. Xavier fits the bill and have overtaken Gonzaga with the most successful mid-major program.
Here is a breakdown of the key dates and locations for the 2009 Mens Basketball Tournament. First the dates:
- Selection Sunday Date: March 14th
- Opening Round/Play-in Game Date: March 16th
- NCAA Tournament First Round Dates: March 18th-20th
- NCAA Tournament Second Round Dates: March 19th-21st
- NCAA Tournament Regional Semi-final Round Dates: March 25th-27th
- NCAA Tournament Regional Final Dates: March 26th-28th
- Final Four Date: April 3rd
- NCAA Mens Basketball Championship Game Date: April 5th
Here are locations of the 2010 NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament. Remember how the whole “pod” system works. During the first two rounds of the tourney, eight teams play at each host site. The top four seeds in each region are placed at a site as close to the school’s location as possible. with other three teams in the top-seeded teams’ bracket “pod” also playing at that site. Here are the first and second round locations for March Madness 2010:
2010 NCAA Tournament Schedule and Locations
- Opening Round/Play-In Game: Dayton, OH (Dayton, Arena)
First and Second Round NCAA Tournament Locations, March 18th and March 20th
- New Orleans, Louisiana (New Orleans Arena)
- Providence, Rhode Island(Dunkin Donuts Center)
- San Jose, California(HP Pavilion)
- Spokane, Washington(Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena)
First and Second Round NCAA Tournament Locations, March 19th and March 21st
- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma(Taco Bell Arena)
- Buffalo, New York(HSBC Arena)
- Jacksonville, Florida(Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena)
Regional Semi-Final and Regional Final NCAA Tournament Locations, March 25th and March 27th
- East Regional: Syracuse, New York(Carrier Dome)
- West Regional:Salt Lake City, Utah(Energy Solutions Arena)
Regional Semi-Final and Regional Final NCAA Tournament Locations, March 26th and March 28th
- Midwest Regional: St. Louis, Missouri (Edward Jones Dome)
- Southeast Regional: Houston, Texas(Reliant Stadium)
2009 Final Four Location, April 3rd and April 5th
- Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, Indiana)
And if you are one of those (like me) who enjoy looking at projected brackets on a daily basis as you impatiently await the most exciting three weeks of the sports season, here are a couple good resources for you:
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