Click Above For Current Printable 2010 NCAA Tournament Bracket

(Contest List Below – Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) Back again in 2010, where BankrollSports.com makes things easer for you, the fan and avid sports bettor.  This is exactly what we do here at Bankroll Sports.  We make your lives easier and more profitable. Last year, we decided to make this complete list of NCAA March Madness contests to give you a condesed list of all the tournament bracket contests on the web. Make sure to bookmark this page and please add it to your social media bookmarks for your friends and family.  Also, make sure to check back every once and a while and prior the start of the 2010 NCAA tournament where we always to add new bracket contests to the list. Make sure to leave us a message in the comments of this contest list post if there are any NCAA Tournament bracket contests that you know of that are missing from our list.  We will make sure to add them.  However, we only add FREE March Madness contests to the list.   When the seedings & pairings are set, we will also have some posts with picks & predictions along with some advice on filling out your NCAA tournament bracket. Thanks for visiting Bankroll Sports Handicapping.  Be sure to purchase our expert cappers’ premium March Madness picks this year to make your NCAA tournament a profitable one. (Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF)

Stay Informed; Bookmark This Page & Check Back On Selection Sunday Through Thursday As We Update This Free NCAA Bracket Contest List All Week Up Until The First Game!

• NBC Sports
  1st Place: $2,000
  Perfect Bracket Prize: None
  2nd Place Prizes: Televisions & Blu Ray Players (Up To 10th)
  Direct Contest Link
• ESPN
  1st Place: $10,000 Cash
  Perfect Bracket Prize: None
  2nd Place Prizes: $5,000 Cash
  Direct Contest Link
• BetUS
  1st Place: $10,000 Cash
  Perfect Bracket Prize: 5 Million
  2nd Place Prizes: $10K First Prize for (2) Second Chance Brackets
  Direct Contest Link
• Bodog Sportsbook
  1st Place: $5,000
  Perfect Bracket Prize: None
  2nd Place Prizes: $2,000
  Direct Contest Link
• USA Today
  1st Place: $2,500
  Perfect Bracket Prize: $100,000
  2nd Place Prizes: $500 (Second) & $250 (Third)
  Direct Contest Link
• AOL Fanhouse
  1st Place: $350,000 Cash
  Perfect Bracket Prize: 9 Million Dollars
  2nd Place Prizes: Lots of Cash Prizes
  Direct Contest Link
• Yahoo Sports
  1st Place: $10,000 Cash
  Perfect Bracket Prize: 1 Million Dollars
  2nd Place Prizes: None
  Direct Contest Link

**Click Here For The World’s Greatest Basketball Betting System**

• Sports Co.
  1st Place: $500 Cash
  Perfect Bracket Prize: None
  2nd Place Prizes: $250 Cash
  Direct Contest Link
• Fox Sports
  1st Place: $10,000
  Perfect Bracket Prize: $1,000,000
  2nd Place Prizes: $10K in Other Prizes (Up To 4th Place)
  Direct Contest Link
• Swisher Cigars
  1st Place: Home Theater System
  Perfect Bracket Prize: None
  2nd Place Prizes: Netbook Computer
  Direct Contest Link
• Applebees
  1st Place: Team Wrist Watch & Ipod Touch
  Perfect Bracket Prize: 1 Million
  2nd Place Prizes: Several Prizes (Great Contest)
  Direct Contest Link
• Southwest Airlines
  1st Place: 24 Round Trip Plane Tickets
  Perfect Bracket Prize: N/A
  2nd Place Prizes: Several Prizes
  Direct Contest Link
• hhgregg
  1st Place: 50″ Plasma TV
  Perfect Bracket Prize: N/A
  2nd Place Prizes: Hat & T-Shirt (2nd Chance Brackets)
  Direct Contest Link
• Fanatics Sweeps
  1st Place: $250 Gift Certificate
  Perfect Bracket Prize: $500 Gift Certificate
  2nd Place Prizes: N/A
  Direct Contest Link
• Cappersinfo.com
  1st Place: $500 Betting Account
  Perfect Bracket Prize: N/A
  2nd Place Prizes: $300 Betting Account
  Direct Contest Link
• CBS Sportsline (Poor Contest)
  1st Place: 2011 M Infiniti
  (Random Drawing From Top 10%…Scam Alert!)
  Perfect Bracket Prize: None
  2nd Place Prizes: None
  Direct Contest Link

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(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The field of 65 has been set as the NCAA Tournament is about set to begin on Thursday! Here at Bankroll Sports, we’re going to take a look at some of the tournament-long props that you can invest in at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link)

We’ll have a look at your March Madness prop sheet on a daily basis in this tournament, as we analyze the best ways to boost your bankrolls for the rest of the three-week spectacle.

Prop Bet #1 – Total Number of Games Won by the Pac-10 – Over/Under 1.5: Boy, doesn’t it feel like a slam dunk that a conference that normally has a ton of entrants in it is going to find a way to win two measly games out of 64? Not this year. Both Washington and Cal were subjected to three games in as many nights in the Pac-10 Tournament, and both must be on incredibly tired legs. The Golden Bears really don’t have a great chance at grabbing more than one victory, as they have to deal with Duke in the second round of the tournament if they can beat Louisville, a team that many think can do some real damage in the dance. The only other option for the Pac-10 is its conference champion, Washington. U-Dub was a fringe bubble team at best before winning the conference, and now it’s being asked to beat a Marquette team which may be the most underrated squad in the entire country. If by chance the Huskies survive as the #11 seed in the South, they’ll have to play Baylor, largely considered one of the most talented teams in the nation. Seeing one of these two teams get a win seems like a reasonable option, but two is a bit far-fetched and zero is much more reasonable. Even if the two do split in Round 1, neither one is likely to be a favorite in the second round, so laying -150 chalk is a good option for a prop that may be a winner by the end of the day on Friday.

Selection: Pac-10 Under 1.5 Wins (-150) at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link)

Prop Bet #2 – Will a #14, #15, or #16 seed win a game?: The odds in this one look to be stacked a bit against you from the get-go, but let’s take a closer look at this virtual 12-team play or fade parlay. Since the expansion of the tournament to 64 teams in 1985, there have only been four #2 seeds out of 100 that have been defeated. Fifteen of the 100 #14s advanced to round two (and for what it’s worth, two of those made it to the Sweet 16). History will tell you that, if all things are considered equal, there are 19 times in 25 tournaments, or once every 1.3 tournaments that this happens. So, everyone is going to promptly jump on the “no” in this prop at even money and think that they’re getting a steal, and then complain when some unlikely #15 seed blows up their bet. Don’t be fooled! The #14s this season are all very, very dangerous clubs, and for our money, we think the #3s are especially weak. The odds say that someone big is going down at some point early in this tournament. Bank on the madness that is March to claim a huge scalp on one of the first two days.

Selection: Yes (-130) at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link)

Prop Bet #3 – Total Games Won by Atlantic 10 Teams – Over/Under 2.5 Wins: There’s a reason that the A-10 is favored in all three of its first round games this year. The Temple Owls, Richmond Spiders, and Xavier Musketeers not only have first round winning abilities, but in the event that even two of them get upset in Round 1, any of the three can also roll to the Elite 8 and make this prop a winner for you the hard way as well. Temple is especially dangerous in a very defensive mini-bracket in Jacksonville, and if it can survive a first round date with Cornell, we like this team’s chances of making it to the Sweet 16. That would leave either a victory for the Spiders against a St. Mary’s team that might not have been in the NCAA Tournament without the WCC crown, or one for Xavier over what has to be a very, very tired Minnesota team which played four games in as many nights at Conseco Fieldhouse last week.

Selection: A-10 Over 2.5 Wins (-140) at BetUS Sportsbook. (100% Deposit Bonus by clicking This Link.)

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List of Current Odds to Win The West Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) If there’s a team like a George Mason that is going to come out of nowhere to go to the Final Four, the West Bracket is where is most likely to happen. Some of the best mid-major teams in America are all in this at-large heavy region, and they’re all gunning to be the next Cinderella team to come out of nowhere and become a legitimate threat for the National Championships.

It’s possible to think that the #1 team in this bracket, the Syracuse Orange, may have nothing but mid-majors to face en route to the Final Four. Their first serious test after #16 Vermont is going to be either #8 Gonzaga or #9 Florida State. The Seminoles are the only lower seed on the board to be favored over a higher seed in the first round. Still, everyone knows that HC Mark Few’s club is capable of dominant March Madness runs year in and year out, and the Orange have to be worried to tangle with them so early in the tournament.

The #5 Butler Bulldogs, #12 UTEP Miners, and #13 Murray State Racers are also big time mid-majors that feel like they can do a ton of damage this March. Both the Miners and Racers have to feel shafted for their seedings in the dance. Though UTEP only has itself to blame for not winning the Conference USA Tournament, Murray State did its job and won the Ohio Valley with a dominant record. Yet, as a #13 seed, the Racers face the daunting task of taking on the SEC’s #4 Vanderbilt Commodores in Round 1.

On the other half of the draw, two very underrated mid-majors lie waiting to strike. The #7 BYU Cougars were probably good enough to be on the #5 line this year, especially considering that New Mexico was blessed with a three seed on the other side of the tournament table. They’ve got a bad history in the tournament in recent years, but this should be the year that the Cougs get out of the first round of the dance, as they take on a Florida team that many question whether they belong in the field of 65 or not.

List of Current Odds to Win The West Bracket Can Be Found Below!

The other dangerous mid-major comes out of the Atlantic 10, the #6 Xavier Musketeers. The X-Men have a history of screwing up brackets, as they know what it’s like to get to the Elite 8. Neither the #3 Pittsburgh Panthers nor the #2 Kansas State Wildcats have to be thrilled about the prospects of a second round match with a hungry Cinderella story or a Sweet 16 duel with the other one.

Still, the Orange are the team to beat out West, especially if the injury to F Arinze Onuaku isn’t a serious one. HC Jim Boeheim has a dangerous team that is deep enough to take out any team in America. The road to Indianapolis, as they say, will be a long and winding one, though.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the West Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/17/10):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus up to $1000 at BetUS Sportsbook When Using This Link)

Syracuse +160
Kansas State +300
Pittsburgh +800
Butler +1000
BYU +1000
Xavier +1200
Vanderbilt +1400
Florida State +1600
Gonzaga +1800
Minnesota +2000
UTEP +4000
Florida +4000
Murray State +6000
Oakland +15000
North Texas +30000
Vermont +30000

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• Weekly Sports Betting Rap Sheet 3/15 (0)

Complete List of Odds to Win The Midwest Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The Midwest Bracket is where the #1 overall seed in the tournament, the Kansas Jayhawks are playing. However, the Selection Committee probably didn’t do Rock Chalk any real favors, as this is clearly the most difficult bracket to be playing in. Look out for all of the superstars in this region (and we’re not even going to mention any Jayhawks!).

The Jayhawks are going to need every bit of their depth to get through this bracket. It’s going to get very difficult, very quickly for KU. The winner of the #8 UNLV/#9 Northern Iowa game is going to be playing with a chip on its shoulder and will be out to prove that the mid-majors can indeed play with the big boys.

If Kansas does make a deep run into March, both the #2 Ohio State Buckeyes and #3 Georgetown Hoyas are going to be waiting for it. That means that the Jayhawks will most likely have to get through either F Evan Turner, the AP National Player of the Year, or C Greg Monroe, who is largely considered the most versatile big man in the game.

However, don’t think that a Sweet 16 clash of the Big Ten and Big East titans is a certainty. The #7 Oklahoma State Cowboys have the man probably most suited to take over this entire tournament on their roster in the form of G James Anderson. Anderson, who averaged over 22 points per game this season, is largely being overlooked. The Cowboys draw the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets out of the #10 hole, who just have to feel fortunate to be in this tournament after needing to play four games in four nights in the ACC Tournament just to make it here.

Complete List of Odds to Win The Midwest Bracket Can Be Found Below!

A prospective #4/#5 match between the Maryland Terrapins and Michigan State Spartans is intriguing as well. What Sparty did in last year’s tournament was remarkable, and virtually the entire cast of characters is back. G Kalin Lucas dominated the March Madness proceedings last year, but he’s going to have a tough time pulling his team through the field of 65 once again.

For the Terps, G Greivis Vasquez is wrapping up a fine collegiate career. There’s nothing that he can’t do on the floor, as he is a general, a scorer, a distributor, and a rebounder all in one body. Ask any of the teams in the ACC that have been dealing with this guy for years. Vasquez can single-handedly take Maryland from a ten point deficit to a five point lead in a matter of minutes.

If you’re looking for an upset in this bracket, there are plenty of double digit seeds that are unlikely conference winners. #12 New Mexico State stole a bid to the dance by winning the WAC, while #13 Houston did the exact same thing in Conference USA. The #11 San Diego State Aztecs are the winners of the very dangerous Mountain West, while #14 Ohio toppled both of the MAC powers, Kent State and Akron, to go dancing.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the Midwest Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/17/10):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus up to $1000 at BetUS Sportsbook When Using This Link)

Kansas -140
Ohio State +350
Georgetown +550
Michigan State +1000
Maryland +1300
Tennessee +2000
Oklahoma State +2500
Georgia Tech +4500
UNLV +5000
Northern Iowa +5000
San Diego State +7500
New Mexico State +10000
Houston +10000
Ohio +15000
UC Santa Barbara +30000
Lehigh +30000

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List of Current Odds to Win The South Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The South Region is considered arguably the weakest bracket of the four in this year’s tournament. However, that should make for some competitive basketball over the next couple weeks, as there are legitimately a dozen teams that have to feel like they have a chance to go to the Final Four.

We’ll start at the top with #1 Duke Blue Devils, who are arguably the weakest top seed in this field in spite of the fact that they were rated #3 of the four. They’ve got a trio of players that is just as good as any threesome in the country with G Jon Scheyer, G Nolan Smith, and F Kyle Singler. Those three are scoring over 68% of the Dookies’ points this year, and that ratio has done nothing but go up over the course of the season.

Are the Blue Devils vulnerable? Most likely. That could take a toll on the team very early, as the winner of the California/Louisville game in the #8/#9 draw may prove to be a real threat.

There are four very dangerous double digit seeds in this bracket as well. The #10 St. Mary’s Gaels were the WCC winners this season against a Gonzaga team that is always known to cause problems for big schools this time of year. #11 Old Dominion could’ve snagged an at-large bid to the dance without the Colonial’s automatic bid. This is a squad that already has beaten Georgetown in Washington DC this season, so it’s one that can’t be rested upon.

List of Current Odds to Win The South Bracket Can Be Found Below!

Utah State and Siena, the #12 and #13 seeds respectively, were two of the biggest players in the BracketBusters this year. The Aggies knocked off Wichita State, which is probably what put them in the field of 65 as an at-large team. Siena’s loss to Butler most likely is what punished the Saints with this high seeding. However, this is a team with a great history having advanced to the second round of the dance in back-to-back years out of the Metro Atlantic.

#2 Villanova slumped down the stretch, but it was still a great candidate for a #1 seed until the very end of the season. #3 Baylor is accepted as one of the most talented teams in the country that could cause some big hassles for anyone it runs into if it catches fire.

Don’t forget about #5 Texas A&M, who much like the Bears, are going to get the privilege of playing close to home in Houston should either team make it to the Sweet 16.

The #6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish have found a groove playing their “burn” offense, which is designed to slow down the pace of games. The #4 Purdue Boilermakers are going to be the forgotten team in this bracket. HC Matt Painter’s team may not be playing with F Robbie Hummel and was just destroyed by Minnesota in the Big Ten semifinals, but it is still capable of playing like a #1 seed.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the South Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/16/10):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus up to $1000 at BetUS Sportsbook When Using This Link)

Duke -105
Villanova +250
Baylor +400
Purdue +1600
Texas A&M +1800
Notre Dame +2000
Louisville +2500
California +3000
Richmond +3500
Utah State +4000
St. Mary’s +5000
Old Dominion +5000
Siena +7500
Sam Houston St. +7500
Robert Morris +25000
Winthrop +30000
Arkansas Pine Bluff +35000

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List of Current Odds to Win The East Bracket Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) The East Bracket is largely considered a wide open bracket. HC John Calipari’s club is the top seed in this region, but with the Big East and Atlantic 10 champs roaming in this conference, there are plenty of other squads that can knock off the top seed.

Assuming that the Kentucky Wildcats can get out of the first round against East Tennessee State, they’ll have to face off against two teams that both have the ability to be very, very dangerous for them. The #8 Texas Longhorns were 17-0 once upon a time in this season before falling off the face of the earth, but there’s still no reason to believe that the Horns can’t be frightening to the top seeds. Don’t count out #9 Wake Forest either, as the Demon Deacons played in the rough and tumble ACC.

Two brackets down, there’s a ton of defense. The fight between the #5 Temple Owls and #12 Cornell Big Red should be a fantastic clash between the nation’s top three-point shooting team and one of the best at defending the long ball. Watching F Ryan Wittman try to compete against a squad that is only allowing 56.1 points per game and letting teams shoot 28.1% from downtown should be fantastic.

The winner will get yet another defensive showcase either against the #4 Wisconsin Badgers, who notoriously have one of the best ‘D’s in the nation or the #13 Wofford Terriers, who held teams to just 61.2 points per game.

The other half of the bracket is littered with a lot of marquee at large teams and the #2 West Virginia Mountaineers, who won the Big East for the first time in school history. Their fellow Big East cohorts, the #6 Marquette Golden Eagles are also in this bracket and could be considered very dangerous.

Watch out for the #3 New Mexico Lobos, who were the regular season Mountain West champions. HC Steve Alford thinks he has a team that can win the entire tournament, and even though the Lobos have to travel a long way if they reach the second week of the dance, they’re certainly still going to be a real threat.

The Pac-10 champions, the Washington Huskies, the Big Sky champs, the Montana Grizzlies, and two other at-large teams, the #7 Clemson Tigers and #10 Missouri Tigers round out this bracket.

Click Here For A Complete List of Odds To Win The Entire 2010 NCAA Tournament

Current March Madness Odds to win the East Bracket @ BetUS (as of 3/16/10):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus up to $1000 at BetUS Sportsbook When Using This Link)

Kentucky +120
West Virginia +200
Wisconsin +700
New Mexico +1200
Temple +1600
Marquette +1800
Clemson +2000
Texas +2000
Missouri +2000
Washington +3000
Wake Forest +4000
Cornell +10000
Wofford +15000
Montana +20000
Morgan State +30000
East Tennessee State +30000

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List of Current Odds to Win The 2010 NCAA Tournament Can Be Found Below!

(2010 NCAA Tournament Printable Brackets; PDF – GIF) On Tuesday night, 65 teams vie for college basketball’s biggest prize in the greatest tournament in all of sports. The NCAA Tournament will kick off with the play-in game between the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions and the Winthrop Eagles, and wrap up on Monday April 5th with the National Championship Game between the two teams that are left standing when the madness of March is complete.

The three leading favorites to win this tournament should come as no surprise to anyone. The Syracuse Orange (+800 at Oddsmaker), Kentucky Wildcats (+400 at Oddsmaker), and Kansas Jayhawks (+200 at Oddsmaker) are the three teams of choice. Some combination of those three teams were all supplanted in the AP’s Top 5 for the better part of the last two months, and even though the Orange bowed out of the Big East Tournament early, they are absolutely still deserving of their spot on the bracket and their status as a favorite to win the whole enchilada.

The fourth #1 seed, the Duke Blue Devils and the four #2 seeds all chime in somewhere between +600 and +800 to round out the overwhelming favorites to win the dance at Oddsmaker.

Looking for some nice prices on underdogs? Try to see if the teams that you’re looking at meet this generic eye test before placing a bet.

#1: Does the team have a true scorer that can take over the game?
#2: Does the team have a relatively favorable draw in the first weekend of the tournament?
#3: Is the team playing anywhere near home?
#4: Is the team going to essentially be playing a road game at any point against a team with home court advantage?
#5: Is there another team that fits this bill in their bracket?

There are a few teams that meet this mold that you’ll be able to get some decent prices on along the way.

Take the #12 Cornell Big Red for example (+75000 at Oddsmaker). The Ivy League champs are proven to be able to stick with anyone in the country (especially after nearly winning in Allen Fieldhouse earlier this year), and they have a big time scoring machine in F Ryan Wittman (17.5 PPG). Their draw isn’t the easiest in the world, but the way that Temple and Wisconsin both play, Wittman can catch some fire and knock out either team. Yes, at that point, #1 Kentucky probably awaits, but by then, you’ve got +75000 on a team that you can just scalp out of every step of the way in the future.

The odds aren’t quite as long on the #5 Texas A&M Aggies (+6000 at Oddsmaker), but this team has a schedule that could arguably leave it in the Final Four. Yes, Utah State is a difficult first game and could go against our rule of thumb about going against teams with home court advantage, but if the Aggies can dispose of USU, there could be some really, really clear sailing to the Elite Eight. Purdue is the weakest #4 seed in the field, and the Boilers may be primed to be upset by #13 Siena. Duke may get a heck of a challenge from the Cal/Louisville winner, and as a #5, if there’s a #1 seed that you want to face in this tournament, Coach K’s club is the one. A&M will also be playing just up the road in Houston, which could provide a major boost to a team which has the ability to catch fire in a hurry.

Lastly, stay away from all of these glitzy odds on teams like the #16 Lehigh Mountain Hawks (+2500000 at Oddsmaker) and the sorts. There are only probably 20 teams that legitimately have a chance of winning the National Championship, and none of the teams with seven digit odds are amongst them. It may be nice to laugh and say that you’ve got a $10 ticket that can turn into 2.5 million bucks, but you seriously have a better chance of buying ten quick picks for your local lottery than you do of one of these teams at these odds winning one game, let alone six of them against the elite teams in the nation.

Current Odds to win the 2010 NCAA Tournament @ Oddsmaker (as of 2/26/10):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus up to $1000 at Oddsmaker Sportsbook When Using This Link)

Kansas +200
Kentucky +400
Duke +600
Syracuse +800
Ohio State +600
West Virginia +800
Villanova +800
Kansas State +800
Georgetown +1000
New Mexico +3000
Pittsburgh +4000
Baylor +2000
Maryland +3000
Wisconsin +2000
Vanderbilt +5000
Purdue +5000
Temple +6000
Butler +7500
Texas A&M +6000
Tennessee +7500
Marquette +6000
Xavier +6000
Notre Dame +5000
Oklahoma State +6000
Clemson +10000
BYU +5000
Richmond +20000
UNLV +30000
Texas +4000
Gonzaga +15000
California +15000
Northern Iowa +50000
Wake Forest +10000
Florida State +7500
Louisville +5000
Georgia Tech +25000
Missouri +6000
Florida +15000
St. Mary’s +30000
San Diego State +75000
Washington +15000
Minnesota +10000
Old Dominion +15000
New Mexico State +75000
Cornell +75000
Utah State +30000
UTEP +50000
Houston +75000
Wofford +150000
Siena +75000
Murray State +300000
Ohio +150000
Montana +300000
Oakland +1500000
San Houston State +150000
UC Santa Barbara +300000
Morgan State +2500000
North Texas +1500000
Robert Morris +1500000
Lehigh +2500000
East Tennessee State +2500000
Vermont +1500000
Arkansas Pine-Bluff +2500000
Winthrop +2500000

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• Weekly Sports Betting Rap Sheet 3/15 (0)

The brackets have been released for March Madness, and there are already teams lined up out the door that want to take their swipes at the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee for leaving them out of the field of 65. All of these teams have one thing in common, though. They all lost when it really counted and all had holes their resume. Here’s our March Madness edition of our Weekly Rap Sheet.

Rap Sheet Picture of the Week

Connecticut Huskies HC Jim Calhoun while watching his team crash out of the Big East Tournament to St. John’s.

It feels like this is a weekly ordeal, but at last, it’s finally over with. The 2009-10 Connecticut Huskies are no more. Poor HC Jim Calhoun had to sit there and watch his team blow it out its you know what against the Johnnies on Wednesday at the Big East Tournament. UConn turned the ball over 19 times in defeat. G Kemba Walker shot just 4/17 from the field, but at least it looked like he was trying out there. G Jerome Dyson, on the other hand, looked like he quit on his team. The superstar turned the ball over nine times and was just never mentally in the game. With their season hanging in the balance, the Huskies came up flat against a bad team and lost 73-51 to fall completely out of consideration for the NCAA Tournament.

Not only are we going to take a swipe at the Rhode Island Rams, but we’re going to go after all four bubble teams in the Atlantic 10 as well. None… Not one of you put together enough of a resume to even be considered one of the last four teams left home from the dance. URI looked alright until getting smashed to bits 57-44 by Temple. Even a close loss might’ve made the Rams look like a potential NCAA Tournament team. As for the Charlotte 49ers, Dayton Fliers, and St. Louis Billikens… C’mon guys. You really didn’t think you had a chance of reaching the big dance when you didn’t even qualify for your league semifinals, did you? Charlotte, we’re especially pointing the finger at you. You screwed up by losing to 12-20 Massachusetts on your home court to end your season with losses in seven of your L/8 games.

Yeah, Mississippi State Bulldogs, I hear you moaning as well, especially after you were just a matter of a few tenths of a second from winning the SEC. You’ve got a heck of a lot better gripe about going to the dance after playing the Cats tough, and your win over Florida in the SEC Tournament paired with two wins over Ole Miss should’ve been good enough to go dancing, right? Sorry… Tournament teams don’t lose to Rider on opening night at home by two touchdowns. You should’ve known that your season was over right then and there.

The Virginia Tech Hokies has a nice little gripe, right? After all, 23 wins, ten of which came in the ACC should’ve been good enough to get into the NCAA Tournament, right? Wrong. Play somebody. Brown, UNC-Greensboro, Campbell, Delaware, Iowa, Georgia, VMI, Penn State, Charleston Southern, Maryland-Baltimore County, Longwood, Seton Hall, and North Carolina Central. Those were your out of conference wins. Give me a break. Don’t fall flat on your face against Miami in your first ACC Tournament game, and you’re dancing. For now, don’t complain.

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Let’s get one thing straight before I get started with this little rant: Mississippi State and Minnesota don’t deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament in they don’t win their respective conferences on Sunday. But neither do Illinois, Florida, Rhode Island, Seton Hall, or any other teams that are sitting on this proverbial “bubble” that we have come to know and love.

Come to think of it, Virginia Tech, Florida State, Wake Forest, and probably about 12 other teams shouldn’t get the right to play for the National Championship either.

And you want to expand this field to 96 teams next year???

Regardless of whether I like it or not, the Golden Gophers and Bulldogs are both going to get to win their way onto the dance floor the old fashioned way: by winning their conference tournaments.

These two teams should both take lessons from the teams before them. Washington was considered a bubble team until it removed all doubt by winning the Pac-10. San Diego State could say the same thing with the Mountain West.

The other lesson that Mississippi State and Minnesota should take into consideration: Don’t complain if you don’t get into the field.

The Golden Gophers have some unsightly losses on their resume, including a 28-point defeat to Michigan which capped a season sweep for the Wolverines over Minnesota, a loss at Northwestern, and ‘L’s to Portland and Miami. Winning more than one legitimate road game (@ Illinois) in conference would’ve helped quite a bit, too.

Hey Mississippi State, why the heck are you losing at home to Rider? It doesn’t matter that that loss came on the first night of the regular season. It’s Rider! Tournament teams don’t lose to Western Kentucky or to Arkansas, Alabama, or Auburn in conference play. The only road wins in SEC play came at Ole Miss, LSU, and South Carolina.

Don’t get me wrong… Anyone that wins their conference tournament is deserving of a spot in the field of 65. It’s all of these bubble teams that annoy the heck out of me.

I’ll admit this much: I smirked just a bit when Utah State and UTEP both lost their conference finals, which is probably going to take a bid away from one of these teams that doesn’t deserve to go dancing.

And once again, I’d love nothing more than to see the Dawgs and Gophers take care of business, pull upsets in their conference finals, and take automatic bids to the dance. Then there will be two more teams deserving of their tickets to the NCAA Tournament, while more teams will be left at home, complaining that the system doesn’t work and that there should be more teams allowed in the NCAA Tournament.

But don’t worry, all of you 21-10 teams. When the field expands to 96 teams, you’ll all be in the tournament. Then all we’ll have complaining is all of the 18-14 teams why they’re not allowed to play for college basketball’s biggest prize.

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The 2008-09 Orlando Magic were about as close as you can get to winning their first NBA Championship in franchise history. In the offseason, the team cut ties with F Hedo Turkoglu, a man that was largely considered the heart and soul of a squad that is headlined by C Dwight Howard.

In order to replace the Turkish superstar, GM Otis Smith went out and traded G Courtney Lee and a few other minor pieces for G Vince Carter, who was largely thought to be washed up, and a host of role players, including F Matt Barnes, G Jason Williams, and C Brandon Bass.

So just like most Magic fans, I immediately thought to myself, “Fantastic. We just replaced a superstar for a has-been, two stiffs, and a nut case.”

All that has-been has done this year is average 16.3 points per game and rejuvenate his career.

All the nut case does is annoy the heck out of the opposition, score 8.7 points per game, and does a little bit of everything. Oh yeah, and he got down and dirty and got into the face of G Kobe Bryant when the Lakers came to town last weekend.

Believe it or not, this version of the Orlando Magic may really be better than ever. And there’s never been a better time to strike and capture the city’s first major championship ever than right now.

Just take one look at the Eastern Conference. Even though things aren’t as disgraceful this year as they were a year ago when everyone outside of Orlando, Boston, and Cleveland were all god awful, they’re still pretty bad.

Does anyone really believe that the Magic (or Cavs for that matter) are going to even get remotely challenge by Miami, Charlotte, or anyone else in the bottom of the Eastern Conference in the first round?

Setting up a date with the Celtics in the second round seems like a very realistic possibility, and it also feels like a lot easier task than the Magic faced last season when they had to win Game 7 at Boston Garden to reach the Eastern Conference Finals.

So let’s just fast forward to the inevitable Orlando/Cleveland matchup, shall we?

Last season, there really wasn’t a warm body that could hang with F LeBron James defensively. Now, that nut case Barnes is the man that can get the job done. F Rashard Lewis and Cleveland’s F Antawn Jamison are largely the exact same player and will cancel each other out.

Who’s stopping Superman again? Shaq? I think not.

Cleveland may be the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference, but after six games, Orlando will once again be the team playing in the NBA Finals.

However, that’s not good enough in the home of Mickey Mouse this year. It’s championship or bust, and the entire franchise and the city of Orlando both know it.

Unlike last year’s team that lived and died by the three-pointer and Howard in the post, this team has more slashing ability to the paint. Carter isn’t afraid to get his jersey a little messy, and G JJ Redick has developed a lot more of an inside game that he has had in years past when he was nothing but a three-point shooter. The bench is utilized a lot more as well, as any combination of 11 guys can play 15+ minutes any given night. It’s also a team that can play at the sluggish knockdown , drag out pace that both Cleveland and Boston like to play at.

No team in the NBA is holding teams to a worse shooting percentage than Orlando is at 43.6%. Its 95.3 points per game allowed in the sixth best mark in the league.

The one thing that you can’t measure based on statistics is heart, and it’s that heart, along with tenacity, and toughness that has led the Magic to a six-game winning streak that will probably be stretched out to at least 11 before playing at Atlanta on March 24th.

Mickey Mouse has an angry scowl on his face this season, and if he doesn’t walk away from this season with an NBA Championship, he may never get one.

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Nineteen turnovers, 37.5% shooting from the field, and a bitter 22-point loss to a 13th place team in the Big East later, and the 2009-2010 Connecticut Huskies effectively watched their season come to an abrupt end on Tuesday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

This UConn team is going to be one that is remembered for all of the wrong reasons. For starters, this was a squad that was in the Final Four a year ago. Who could forget when a young, promising G Kemba Walker dropped 23 points on the Missouri Tigers in the Elite 8 or when F Stanley Robinson ate up Purdue for ten points and 11 boards in the Sweet 16? The only major piece to this puzzle from last year’s team that didn’t come back was C Hasheem Thabeet.

Sure, Thabeet was the #2 pick in the NBA Draft that next season, and if he was still on this UConn team, the story could be completely different. But let’s be real here. This is Connecticut. Finishing 17-15 isn’t acceptable.

While watching television on Tuesday night, ESPN’s Doug Gottlieb mentioned that HC Jim Calhoun may not even want to take this bunch of Huskies to the NIT, assuming that they are invited.

Originally, I thought this was crazy. But upon further thought… why would Calhoun want to play with this bunch of kids anymore?

F Jerome Dyson had a miserable game against St. John’s on Tuesday. He turned the ball over nine times and shot just 2/6 from the floor before getting benched for lack of production. I might not be some college basketball guru, but even I can tell that he pretty much gave up on this team.

The aforementioned Kemba Walker shot 4/17 from the floor and was taking some ill-advised shots. I’ll give him this: Walker was fighting the whole way through, which is why Calhoun let him keep playing. But this was a case of a youngster without much experience ultimately trying to put the whole team on his back instead of playing team basketball to try to erase a huge deficit.

Calhoun’s health issues are well-documented. It felt like his leave of absence really took any potential momentum away from this team. Even when he came back from his hiatus, a miserable 60-48 loss to Cincinnati at home was called “an embarrassment” by the head coach.

Three straight wins were nice after that, but a 78-76 home loss to Louisville might’ve marked the end of the season. Losses got progressively worse. Dropping to Notre Dame without F Luke Harangody was disgraceful. Losing at South Florida was appalling. Wrapping it up with a 22-point defeat to St. John’s just has no description.

Calhoun has reportedly been offered a new contract by the university, but he is going to strongly consider whether or not he wants to take the Huskies up on it or not. After winning 822 career games and two National Championships, the sixth most winningest coach in NCAA Division I history has nothing left to prove.

It’s pretty clear that the Connecticut Huskies are still a long ways away from being able to compete in the rough and tumble Big East again. If Jim Calhoun is smart, he’ll realize that it’s time to step away and let the Huskies fend for themselves.

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