The 2024 NCAA Tournament has arrived and it's time for the beautiful chaos that is March Madness, which begins with the First Four on March 19 and concluding with the national championship on April 8 in Phoenix.
Every year, there are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to filling out your brackets and placing futures wagers on programs to make a deep run toward college basketball's ultimate prize. Below, we offer our March Madness picks for teams to avoid if you don't want your bracket busted and your bets to fall short.
2024 March Madness betting odds: UConn, Houston favored to win NCAA Tournament
The UConn Huskies went 31-3 in the regular season, absolutely dominating the opposition. For that reason, it’s no surprise that they’re the odds-on favorites to win March Madness at +420. The Huskies topped San Diego State to take home the national championship in 2023, and they’ve shown no signs of slowing down.
All of the teams behind UConn failed to win their conference championship. Arizona didn't even reach the Pac-12 championship while UNC fell to a red-hot N.C. State team and Houston was embarrassed by Iowa State in the Big 12 title game.
2024 March Madness teams to avoid: Fade Auburn, Duke in NCAA Tournament?
Upsets are a fixture of March Madness, making the first couple of rounds one of the best viewing experiences for basketball fans. To avoid busting your bracket or parlay, let’s take a look at some of the teams to avoid for a deep run in the 2024 NCAA Tournament:
For a team that went 24-8 in the regular season and holds a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, Duke feels like fool's gold. After exiting early from the ACC Tournament at the hands of the N.C. State Wolfpack, the Blue Devils are slated to face the Vermont Catamounts in the tournament’s opening round.
The Duke offense is a strong one, averaging over 80 points per game in the regular season, but they also do the bulk of their damage from beyond the arc. As the tournament churns along, there will be a team that forces Duke into the paint and limits the damage from range. Sitting in the South Region, a potential tilt with No. 1 Houston awaits.
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The Vols would have likely secured a No. 1 seed had they not made an early exit from the SEC Tournament, and that loss placed them in the Midwest Regional along with Creighton and South Carolina. Creighton is not a team to sleep on – they beat UConn this year, and with a balanced offense with multiple players capable of taking over scoring, the Vols have an uphill battle ahead of them.
Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht averaged 21.1 points per game in the regular season, but if he is shut down the Vols offense becomes far more one-dimensional.
Winners of the SEC Championship, the Auburn Tigers received no favors from the selection committee. Sitting in the same region as No. 1 UConn and 2023 March Madness finalists San Diego State, the Tigers could not have received a worse draw. They’re a team that has the talent to make it into the tournament’s later rounds, but with a head-to-head with the Huskies looming, on paper, they’re poised to make an early exit from March Madness.
2024 March Madness prop betting: Underdog DFS Promo Code FPBETS offers $100 bonus for NCAA Tournament
Some legal betting states do allow March Madness prop betting, but it’s much more widespread at a DFS site such as Underdog, which offers $100 guaranteed bonus when registering with our Underdog March Madness promo code BETFPB when signing up.
Underdog DFS allows you to choose Higher or Lower on college basketball props, similar to an over/under. These picks can be strung together into one entry, similar to a parlay. The more picks you make, the more you can win! There’s also an option to win something even if every selection does not win.
Note: Underdog DFS does not allow college basketball props in all states, so check your local offerings.
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Carter Breazeale is a contributor for Catena Media with a focus on sports, business and the business of sports. An Atlanta native currently residing in Orlando, Carter graduated from The University of Central Florida. He’s appeared in Catena’s PlayGeorgia, SB Nation’s The Falcoholic and The Orlando Business Journal.