Basketball Betting: March Madness is here!

Basketball / Nick Shiambouros / 16 March 2009 / Leave a Comment

The NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball Championship gets underway this Thursday in what promises to be a wide open event, writes Nick Shiambouros.

I have witnessed one of the best seasons of college basketball I have seen in many years and this tournament promises to be just as exciting. This wonderful event brings the year to a close and the National Championship game takes place on April 6th .

The North Carolina Tar Heels, led by superstar Tyler Hansbrough , are one of the favourites. They were my original selection to win the tournament but guard Ty Lawson is nursing a big toe injury and there is a doubt about his participation. I believe that this is the best rotation in college basketball but they do not look the same team without Lawson. I would advise waiting to see if he starts before backing this team.

The University of Connecticut will fancy their chances of winning this tournament. They are led by one of the most exciting defensive players I have seen in years in the shape of Hasheem Thabeet. This junior is averaging 4.5 blocks per game and was voted the Big East defensive player of the year for the second time. The Connecticut Huskies were involved in one of the best games I have ever seen last Thursday against Syracuse in a match-up that lasted nearly four hours and six overtimes.

The Syracuse Orange are on cloud nine at the moment after winning this epic game and I think they will go deep in to the tournament. With Jonny Flynn and Paul Harris leading, coach Jim Boeheim has done a fantastic job. The Orange were exhausted late on Saturday night when they lost the Big East championship to Louisville but they will be rested when the competition gets under way.

The Louisville Cardinals are capable of winning this championship. They come in to the tournament in superb form and are finding rhythm at the right time. The Cardinals have the best defense in the country and are lethal from the three point line. They have shown that they can come from behind to win as they did against a solid Villanova team last Friday night.

Pittsburgh can go deep on to the competition with the talented Sam Young and sophomore sensation DeJuan Blair on fire at the moment. This team has the talent and determination to make some real noise.

I do not see any major upsets in the opening rounds but I think that Duke could be a team to oppose in the third or fourth round. Duke are a small team and the officials have not been calling much contact underneath the basket this season. I think they could be vulnerable to a bigger school early in the competition.

My final four predictions are North Carolina, Connecticut, Louisville and Pittsburgh.

The NCAA tournament is free to watch online at www.ncaa.com. This year a new High Quality player is available for your enjoyment.

Recommended wagers:

NCAA Tournamemt, Connecticut and North Carolina. Back both in outright market.