Sam Panayotovich
FOX Sports Betting Analyst
One more sleep until March.
Football dominates the sports calendar from August to February, then many American bettors start to shift their attention to college hoops. Some dip in a toe to test the temperature while others dive right in the pool.
By the time we reach March, bettors are fully conditioned. We’re watching more hoops during the week and Saturdays are all ball, all day. These next few weeks truly serve as a study guide for the test that is the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s the “Saturday Trifecta” for the first day of March, with odds as of Feb. 28.
’25 CBB Plays (3-3, -0.4 units)
No. 1 Auburn (-4.5, O/U 166.5) @ No. 17 Kentucky
It’s never fun going against the No. 1 team in the country, but sometimes you do what you gotta do. Teams that make shots can hang around with Auburn. Kentucky checks that very important box, as the Wildcats shoot almost 40% from three and near 60% from two. Let’s snag the extra point or so that sportsbooks have made you pay for Auburn all season and hope Big Blue doesn’t go ice-cold from the floor.
PICK: Kentucky (+4.5) to lose by fewer than 4.5 points, or win outright
Utah State (+2.5, O/U 151.5) @ Colorado State
I stand by what I said two weeks ago about Utah State. The Aggies run a unique offense under Jerrod Calhoun, and they’ll be a tough matchup in the NCAA Tournament, especially if they reach the second game of a weekend. I’m betting Utah State off a loss here against a good but not great Colorado State. I don’t believe the Rams offense has enough versatility to win.
PICK: Utah State ML
George Mason (-2.5, O/U 125.5) @ Duquesne
The Patriots are an absolute pest on defense. You’ve got to really share the sugar well on offense to score and that’s not something Duquesne does. The Dukes also shoot a disastrous 64% at the free throw line. Only nine Division I teams are worse. George Mason is much more battle-tested this year (Duke, Marquette and VCU) and I expect the sharps on ’em tomorrow.
PICK: George Mason (-2.5) to win by more than 2.5 points
Sam Panayotovich is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and the BetMGM Network. He previously worked for WGN Radio, NBC Sports and VSiN. Follow him on Twitter @spshoot.
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