How does March Madness Betting Work
Each of our favorite sportsbooks (we’ll get to them) will start listing moneylines, point spreads and over/under totals as soon as the field and first-round pairings are revealed for each March Madness game. There will be 67 games (counting the First Four) that you can bet on March Madness.
The sportsbooks will also have future bets posted, where you can pick the winner of March Madness before and during the tournament. For the Final Four and NCAA Final, the sportsbooks will offer a deep well of prop bets on team and individual player performances.
Since it’s tournament play, there is only one day for teams to rest between the first and second round and in between the third round (called the Sweet 16) and fourth round (the Elite Eight). So the NCAA March Madness odds come out quick. You’ll want to be on your game before going on your March Madness betting journey!
March Madness Betting Odds
These are the type of markets that will be offered by most basketball betting sites. You may want to stick with one of the traditional ones if you’re just starting out, but if you’re a deep fan and know everything about one school or one player, feel free to dig into a prop bet.
Most Popular
The most popular March Madness betting sites feature the traditional bets, let’s break them down like teams break down a 2-3 zone defense.
The easiest to bet on March Madness is called the moneyline. This is a straight-up bet on what team you think will win the March Madness game. The March Madness betting sites will analyze the match-ups, the players, the coaches, the past history between the teams and come up with a favorite (the team expected to win) and the underdog (the team expected to lose).
They will then post odds on those teams winning. If you bet on the moneyline, it means you’re not giving any points via the point spread, you’re just picking what team you think will win. The favorite will have a lower payout than the underdog.
Another way to bet on March Madness is a March Madness point spread. The ‘spread’ is the number of points the sportsbooks feel the favorite will win by. This is done to encourage betting on both sides. The favorite will be listed with a minus (-) sign and then a number, like UCLA – 7 while the underdog will have a plus (+) sign, like Syracuse +7.
This means the March Madness betting sites feel UCLA will beat Syracuse by seven points. If you bet on Syracuse, that means you get seven points added to their final total in the game. To win that bet, you need Syracuse to either win, or lose by less than seven points. Sticking with this example, if you bet on UCLA -7, that means you only win if UCLA wins by more than seven points.
A total, or point total, is another popular way to bet on March Madness. This refers to the total number of points scored in the game, and the bet doesn’t hinge at all on the outcome. Going back to our Syracuse vs. UCLA example, March Madness betting sites can set the total at 135.5 points and give you the option to bet over the total or under.
If you bet the over, you’ll win if the combined point total by both teams is over 135.5 (the half point is added to prevent a push), no matter who wins. If you bet the under, then cheer for both teams to miss shots and play defense. You’ll win your bet if the total points is under 135.5.
Prop bets
Prop bets are other March Madness bets that are not connected to the game’s outcome, but hinge on a team or player’s performance.
These can be as simple as an over/under total on a player’s number of points, rebounds or assists. You can bet whether you think they will hit for more or less.
There are also prop bets based on a team’s performance, like the total number of rebounds by a team, total number of three-pointers made.
One of the more popular NCAA Tournament bets is the prop bet for first basket scorer, in other words, which player will score the first points of the game (this is like football’s popular first TD scorer bet). You can also predict whether the game will go into overtime.
Futures
A futures bet is just what it sounds like, a gamble on the future result and a cool way to bet on March Madness. March Madness betting sites start listing the favorites to win March Madness as soon as the previous season ends, and the odds will fluctuate wildly as the tournament kicks into high gear.
There will also be markets on who will be the March Madness Most Outstanding Player, also known as the Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Live Betting
Live betting is the new big thing in sports betting at March Madness betting sites. Players no longer have to place their bets before the game starts….or else.
Each prominent sportsbook will give March Madness players the ability to bet on the game even after it’s begun in what is called “Live Betting.” Computer algorithms provide instant changes in the point spread or over/under totals allowing players to place a bet well into the contest.
If you’re watching the first half and sense a blowout coming, maybe you want to take the favorite and give the points, or if you feel that the underdog is missing some shots early and going to rally, live betting gives you the chance to get in the game and bet on March Madness while the game is being played.
Futures
A futures bet is just what it sounds like, a gamble on the future result and a cool way to bet on March Madness. March Madness betting sites start listing the favorites to win March Madness as soon as the previous season ends, and the odds will fluctuate wildly as the tournament kicks into high gear.
There will also be markets on who will be the March Madness Most Outstanding Player, also known as the Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Live Betting
Live betting is the new big thing in sports betting at March Madness betting sites. Players no longer have to place their bets before the game starts….or else.
Each prominent sportsbook will give March Madness players the ability to bet on the game even after it’s begun in what is called “Live Betting.” Computer algorithms provide instant changes in the point spread or over/under totals allowing players to place a bet well into the contest.
If you’re watching the first half and sense a blowout coming, maybe you want to take the favorite and give the points, or if you feel that the underdog is missing some shots early and going to rally, live betting gives you the chance to get in the game and bet on March Madness while the game is being played.
March Madness Structure/Brackets
The men’s college basketball season started in November with approximately 350 teams competing in Division 1 of the NCAA. They start the season with non-conference games against local teams, then move on to conference play.
This is where the traditional rivalries add a chapter, like Duke-North Carolina, or USC-UCLA or Michigan-Ohio State.
Winning the regular season conference title is nice, but then it’s tournament season. Every conference has its own conference tournament with the winner receiving an automatic bid to March Madness.
Eventually the field of 68 teams are revealed on Selection Sunday (this year it’s March 12) with eight of those teams playing in what is called the “First Four” in Dayton, Ohio.
The winners there move into the bracket of 64 teams, each seeded 1-16 by the NCAA and placed in four different regions throughout the country. The higher the seed, the better the team, supposedly, but one of the beauties of March Madness is the lower seeds pulling the upsets.
Each region is a mini March Madness tournament of its own. It’s all win or go home, survive and advance as they say. The four Region winners meet up in the Final Four in Houston April 1, and the winners collide for the national title on April 3.
When the final buzzer sounds, confetti shoots in the air, the popular music montage “One Shining Moment” plays showing the tournament highlights and the winning team gets to cut down the nets as a symbol of their excellence.
Rules and regulations for March Madness betting
Massachusetts became the latest state to approved online sports gambling launching March 10, 2023. Yes, this was done just in time for players to bet on March Madness.
Before the 2023 tournament starts, there were 33 states (including Washington D.C.) that sanctioned sports betting, which includes March Madness betting, but many states have restrictions on whether you can bet on the state’s local college teams or events or a prop bet offered on a college athlete.
This safety measure is put in place to ensure that athletes can’t be induced into shaving individual or team points.