James Madison vs Wisconsin Predictions, Picks, and Odds: Chucky Shows Killer Instinct in March Madness Opener

James Madison will meet Wisconsin in the March Madness bracket and they appear to be a trendy upset pick.

Wisconsin caught fire to end the season. It made a run to the Big Ten Championship game but eventually lost to Illinois in the title game. Before that, though, the Badgers had ripped off three straight wins to get to that point. 

James Madison has been impressive for much of the season. The Dukes are one of the few teams in the tournament to get to 30 wins on the season. They'll come into this game as hot as can be, riding a 13-game win streak. That win streak was capped by a 20-point Sun Belt Championship win over Arkansas State but are they good enough to make the cut in our March Madness picks?

Find out as we break down the March Madness odds and give our best free college basketball picks and predictions for tonight. 

James Madison vs Wisconsin best odds

James Madison vs Wisconsin picks and predictions

This is a tricky game to figure out. Each team has distinct defensive advantages, naturally making you lean into the Under.

The Wisconsin Badgers are an excellent rim defense, ranking nationally in the Top 50. That's a problem for the James Madison Dukes as they'll enter this game as one of the most rim-reliant teams in college basketball. Wisconsin will see a type of defense they have not seen much of this season. They will force the Badgers into isolation situations, and that's been a profitable proposition for them for only a short time of the season. Everything screams Under, yet….

There's a chance that Wisconsin's superior talent, athleticism, and size will win out and speed this game up. If that happens, the Under doesn't stand. I've opted to stay away from the total in this game and will pivot to something much more consistent.

Everything about this game screams Chucky Hepburn. He's best suited to profit off those isolation situations, and he's played very well over the last month. Hepburn has now gone Over this number in three straight games, and it has yet to be close, as he's averaged 17.5 points in that stretch. He's also been waiting for this moment after exiting the Badgers' last tournament exit with an injury.

"I don't want to just go make March Madness," Hepburn said Monday. "I want to make a deep run in this tournament."

As I mentioned previously, Hepburn is a great isolation scorer, and he's likely to have the ball in his hands in these spots because he doesn't have teammates who thrive in these spots. In these situations, he'll enter this game ranked in the top 15% of isolation scoring with 1.06 points per possession. The data is small because Wisconsin only finds itself in these situations; however, it will in this matchup.

As you'd expect, as it's mostly a function of their defense, the Dukes are a pretty poor isolation defense, and it will likely struggle more against a team with superior athleticism along with speed will come into play. That's where Hepburn's speed comes into play. James Madison doesn't have the guards to stay in front of him, and I'd expect him to get to the rim easily.

I'm making this the first two-unit play of the tournament. One of the reasons is that it's such a simple analysis. This is likely to be a close game late. Thus, expect Wisconsin to have the ball in the hands of their senior guard often. He has a great matchup. Thus, I expect him to take advantage of these opportunities and make critical plays late to help his team get over the hump.

My best bet: Chucky Hepburn over 10.5 points (-122 at FanDuel)

James Madison vs Wisconsin same-game parlay

Chucky Hepburn Over 10.5 points

Under 145.5

+114 at FanDuel

We're getting a nice multiplier on this same-game parlay with the noncorrelated parlay.

This goes directly in line with the handicap of my best bet. Both teams can take away the primary offense route for the other. This can become a slugfest, especially early, while each side feels the other out. I projected this number at 140.5 and I'll happily take this edge.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

James Madison vs Wisconsin spread and Over/Under analysis

I like Wisconsin to do enough here to get the win, but I have no interest in backing aside.

I'm expecting a reasonably low-possession game where individuals have to make isolation plays, and that's not very conducive to taking a multiple-possession spread. Before the loss against Illinois, Wisconsin had been a very impressive ATS steak with covers in four straight games. As mentioned, James Madison has been as hot as anyone in the country from a win/loss perspective but could have better ATS numbers.

Like I've spoken about previously, I like the Under here.

The matchups of this game scream of one where both teams slow down, and the others make actions, and in-game adjustments have to be made. That will take time, and while it does, expect the scoring to be complicated. While Wisconsin has been on a run of Overs, most of those have game in-games with overly inflated Unders.

James Madison vs Wisconsin betting trend to know

Wisconsin has hit the 1H Moneyline in their last two games (+2.00 Units / 95% ROI). Find more college basketball betting trends for James Madison vs. Wisconsin.

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James Madison vs Wisconsin game info

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