UMBC’s appearance in the NCAA Tournament will give you fond memories for the rest of its history, unless you’re a Virginia fan.
In 2018, the University of Maryland, Baltimore County accomplished a task considered nearly impossible for years. The Hounds became the first No. 16 seed to defeat a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Not only did they win, they beat Virginia by 20 points. Fairleigh Dickinson repeated the feat in 2023, beating No. 1 seed Purdue, but UMBC will forever be associated with upsets of No. 1 seeds against No. 16 seeds. Now the Hounds are back in the tournament hoping for another chance at the No. 1 seed.
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Here are the picks for Tuesday’s first four games, with all odds coming from BetMGM:
UMBC (-1.5) beat Howard
Both teams were playing well late in the season. UMBC has won 15 of its last 16 games. Howard won 14 of 16 games. Howard thrives on defense, which is very good at cutting down on turnovers and missed shots, and UMBC’s offense is solid. One difference here may be that UMBC won’t hand it over. Their turnover rate ranks 27th in college basketball, according to KenPom.com. That could diminish one of Howard’s biggest strengths.
UMBC’s Josh Odunowo holds the trophy after defeating Vermont in the America East tournament finals. (Kim Hairston/The Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
(The Baltimore Sun via Getty Images)
As the distribution shows, this should be a competitive game to keep the tournament going. This pick is UMBC, which has a much better shooting ability.
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North Carolina (+1.5) over Texas
North Carolina State is a hot team this offseason. They hired Will Wade, a good coach who was passed over from LSU due to a controversy over paying players (kind of funny now, isn’t it?), and he went to McNeese and built a program there that won an NCAA tournament game last season. NC State has done well in the transfer portal, especially with the addition of coveted forward Darrion Williams from Texas Tech. But the results didn’t live up to the hype. NC State is currently 20-13 and 2-7 down the stretch.
There’s a reason Texas is playing in the Final Four in Dayton. This is a mediocre Longhorns team that has lost five of its last six games, including a first-round loss to a bad Mississippi State team in the SEC Tournament.
Although both teams stumbled to the end, this should be an interesting game. Both teams have strong offense and good coordination. The deciding factor in a tight game: NC State’s three-point shooting is very good, ranking 10th in the country, while Texas’ perimeter coverage is poor. The Longhorns rank 299th in three-point shooting percentage. One of these teams has to break out of their late-season slump.