The best March Madness betting sites favor the home team by seven points when the Villanova Wildcats and the Baylor Bears play each other on Saturday in the college basketball NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 at the Hinkle Fieldhouse. No. 1 Baylor is favored to block Villanova’s road to the Sweet 16.
Baylor (24-2 SU, 16-10 ATS) and Villanova (18-6 SU, 14-10 ATS) go into their Sweet 16 match Saturday following double-digit wins in the Round of 32. The No. 1 Bears made short work of the No. 9 Wisconsin Badgers 76-63. The No. 5 Wildcats shredded the No. 13 North Texas Mean Green 84-61.
The Baylor Bears opened this matchup as a 5.5-point faces against a Villanova team that has covered the spread in both of its tourney games. The total opened at 131.5 and has shot up to the 140 mark.
Villanova Wildcats vs. Baylor Bears March Madness Odds by MyBookie.ag
| Team | SP/RL | TOTAL | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Villanova | +6½ (-110) | 140½ (-110) | +235 |  |
| Baylor | +6½ (-110) | 140½ (-110) | -275 | |
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Betting Villanova Wildcats
Champagne Villanova is the best betting sites’ favorite. Even with some first-half woes in both games, the Wildcats eliminated the Winthrop Eagles 73-63 in their opening game. Then they thrashed North Texas on Sunday. Jeremiah Robinson-
Earl had 18 points in the win over the Mean Green.
Jermaine Samuels and Justin Moore added 15 each. Villanova now meets its toughest challenge of the season. They will do so sans guard Collin Gillespie. The senior’s absence due to injury has not set the Wildcats back yet.
But the range of the Baylor guards will no doubt be problematic here for Nova. The Wildcats ranked outside the top 200 in defensive field-goal percentage in the regular season. On the other end, they were 71st in points per game.
As well as an underwhelming 240th in offensive rebounding.
According to the best online sportsbooks, The Wildcats are 23-10-1 ATS in their last 34 neutral site games and 3-0-1 ATS in their last four games as an underdog. The over is 4-1 in Wildcats last five neutral site games.
The Villanova Wildcats average 75.8 points on 45.1% shooting. They allow 66.9 points on 44.9% shooting. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl averages 16 points and 8.4 rebounds. Collin Gillespie averages 14 points and 3.3 rebounds.
Betting Baylor Bears
The top seed in the South Region, the Bears whupped the Hartford Hawks 79-55 in the Round of 64. They then manhandled Wisconsin on Sunday to make it through to the Sweet 16. Matthew Mayer scored 17 points off the bench in the win over the Badgers.
Jared Butler and Davion Mitchell contributed 16 each. Butler averages just short of 17 points per game. They shoot an outstanding 42% from beyond the arc. This is a disciplined and seasoned team with a starting lineup consisting solely of upperclassmen.
Baylor led the nation in long-distance shooting, shooting 41.5% from three-point range. They rank fourth with 83.8 points per game. Per the best betting sites, The Bears are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 neutral site games and 0-4 ATS in their last four games following a ATS win.
The Baylor Bears averaging 85.3 points on 49.7% shooting. They allow 65.6 points on 43.2% shooting. Jared Butler averages 17 points and 3.3 rebounds. MaCio Teague averages 16.4 points and 4.2 rebounds
Villanova Wildcats vs. Baylor Bears March Madness Picks
The Baylor Bears have been winning and covering like nobody’s business since last season. One probably shouldn’t be planning on betting against them. However, the Villanova Wildcats displayed some impressive skills in the first two rounds.
They shoot well enough from the outside to create defense issues for Baylor. This will be the first time this season that Villanova is a dog. They have only been an underdog four times since December of 2019. Jay Wright has almost a week to plan the game. Take the free points and the Wildcats.
