- All four underdogs in the First Four went 4-0 against the spread.
- The UCLA Bruins and Texas Southern Tigers overcame 10-point deficits.
INDIANAPOLIS - The First Four of March Madness proved that anything could happen in March as three of the four underdogs came out on top and all four of them covered the spreads going into the game.
Going into the First Four, online sportsbooks had no spread that was greater than 3.5 points. Starting with the first game of the night, Texas Southern went in at 1.5-point underdogs against Mount St. Mary’s and came out on top with a final score of 60-52.
The last game of the night had the UCLA Bruins college basketball odds as 2.5-point underdogs in which they came out on top as well 86-80. Something else to take note of in this game is that UCLA had just 13% of the moneyline bets prior to the game as they overcame a 5-point deficit in the last 1:10 of regulation before forcing overtime.
Taking a deeper dive into these first two games, both UCLA and Texas Southern trailed the game by double digits at halftime and came back to win.
Per @ESPNStatsInfo
Texas Sou. trailed by 10 at halftime and came back to win. UCLA trailed by 11 at halftime before the comeback. 1st time over the last 10 years that there have been multiple double-digit halftime comebacks on the same day in the NCAA Tourney. #MarchMadness
— David Bearman ESPN (@DBearmanESPN) March 19, 2021
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In the other two First Four games, Norfolk State were 3.5-point underdogs going into the game before coming out on top 54-53. Also, Wichita State was seen as 2-point underdogs in the game and ended up falling short 52-53 but still covered the spread.
With three of the four underdogs coming out on top and all four of them covering the spread, it just goes to show that March Madness truly is unpredictable. That unpredictable trend will look to continue in the First Round.
Some first-round matchups to look at are between the 8 and 9 seed, 5 and 12 seed, 6 and 11 seed and the 7 and 10 seed. The 8/9 matchup has been truly unpredictable as just up until 2019 the series was tied 68-68 until all four 9 seeds came out on top which gives the 9 seeds a 51.4% chance of advancing.
The 5/12 matchup also does not disappoint as 5 seeds lead the series 90-50 which leaves 12 seeds a 35.7% chance of moving on.
The 6/11 game has a similar outcome as the 6 seeds lead 88-52 which leaves the 11 seeds a 37.1% chance to advance. In the 7/10 matchup, the series is split by just 10 games at 85-55 in favor of the 7 seeds. Percentage-wise, 10 seeds have a 39.3% chance of going to the second round.
Samuel decided to get into writing 6 years ago when he first started his college career at Florida State University. After declaring a major in Editing, Writing and Media, Samuel had found his passion for writing. During his free time, he could be found writing about, watching or playing sports.
