March Madness Predictions: 3 NCAA Tournament Bets to Make Right Now

The bracket has just been revealed and Jason Logan has wasted no time in isolating three must-bet wagers, including UConn against the spread in its first-round match.

Jason Logan: Senior Betting Analyst at Covers
Jason Logan • Senior Betting Analyst
Mar 16, 2025 • 20:39 ET • 4 min read
Tarris Reed Jr. UConn Huskies March Madness
Photo By - Imagn Images.

The NCAA Tournament has that "new bracket smell" with Selection Sunday still ringing in our ears.

Oddsmakers aren’t wasting time getting up spreads and totals for the Round of 64 matchups, which means I’m jumping on a few Big Dance openers.

Here are three March Madness picks and predictions I’m betting right now.

3 March Madness bets to make right now

No. 4 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 13 Akron Zips: Over 166.5 (-110 at bet365)

We have an opening round showdown between two up-tempo attacks. 

The Arizona Wildcats run the 54th-fastest pace in the land and score almost 82 points per game, powered by the fastbreak (14 FBPTS). 

The Akron Zips live up to their nickname, ranked 16th in tempo and scoring 84 points per game, with 13 of those on fastbreak points. Akron can also hit from distance, averaging almost 11 3-pointers per game.

No. 3 Wisconsin Badgers vs. No. 14 Montana Grizzlies: Wisconsin -16.5 (-110 at bet365)

The Wisconsin Badgers have a bad taste in their mouths after letting the Big Ten title slip away in the closing minutes. Wisconsin is a handful offensively but also flexed its defensive muscle during the conference tournament.

The Montana Grizzlies aren’t great defensively and will have a really hard time dealing with all the Badgers’ screening and movement. The Grizzlies struggle to match up in isolation sets and Wisconsin thrives on creating those one-on-one options. Game models call for as high as a 19-point win from Wisconsin.

No. 8 UConn Huskies vs. No. 9 Oklahoma Sooners: UConn -4.5 (-110 at bet365)

Stock is down on the UConn Huskies after an inconsistent season and exit in the Big East tournament. The same can’t be said for the SEC schools, even if Oklahoma hasn’t done much since winning the Battle 4 Atlantis back in November. 

The Oklahoma Sooners will have trouble inside against UConn’s size in the halfcourt. They gave up 33 points in the paint per outing (246th) and sit 322nd in 2-point field-goal percentage on defense. Connecticut is dominant inside, putting up 35.8 PITP per outing and can crash the offensive glass for putbacks. 

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Jason Logan Senior Industry Analyst Covers.com
Senior Betting Analyst

In his 20 years with Covers, lead NFL betting analyst “JLo” has seen it all and bet it all. Through the wild west of early Internet gambling to lobbying for legalized sports betting to our brave new wagering world, Jason has been a consistent source of actionable info and entertainment for squares and sharps alike.

Since joining the Covers team back in 2005, he’s honed his handicapping skills to provide audiences with the most thorough insights, blending traditional capping methods with advanced modelling and predictive analysis. Jason has studied the ins and outs of the sports betting business, learning from some of the most successful gamblers in the industry and the biggest sportsbook operators on the planet.

He is under center for Covers during NFL season as our top NFL expert, taking the points in his infamous “NFL Underdogs” column and representing the Covers Community at the Super Bowl. While he lives for football season, Jason’s first love is basketball and that shows in his in-depth NBA, NCAA, and WNBA betting breakdowns.

On top of being a mainstay in media from coast to coast – WPIX, PHL17, Fox 5 San Diego, WGNO, TSN, SportsNet, ESPN Radio – he’s had his analysis featured in USA Today, MSNBC, ESPN, the Wall Street Journal, CBS, Bloomberg, the L.A. Times, the New York Times and other major publications. You can also find JLo stuffing all the top picks and predictions he can into 10 minutes as the host of Covers’ flagship podcast, The Sharp 600.

His best advice for bettors new and old is “Handicapping isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ process. The impact and importance of information varies from bet to bet. Treat each wager different than the last.”

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