NCAA Tournament 2021: Betting The Sweet 16

The Sweet 16 pairings and lines are set, and the 2021 edition looks quite different from the last NCAA Tournament in 2019 when all 16 favorites won in the Round of 32. Now we have three No. 1 and two No. 2 seeds left, but also four double-digit seeds plus and 8, 7 and 6 seed after many opening round upsets that continued into the Round of 32 with No. 15 seed Oral Roberts advancing along with No. 12 Oregon State and two No. 11 seeds – UCLA and Syracuse. Oh, and 101-year-old Champlan Sister Jean is back with No. 8 seed Loyola Chicago with the Ramblers trying to crash the Final Four party again.

Gonzaga remains the prohibitive favorite to cut down the nets, but Baylor and Alabama are the two favorites taking the most spread money in the Sweet 16.

“It’s been all Baylor so far,” William Hill Director of Trading Nick Bogdanovich said via email. “This is going to be a big decision, we’re going to need Villanova for a small wheelbarrow full of money. That line move was probably sharp money and I think the public will be on Baylor as well.”

The Alabama Crimson Tide are taking most bets and money with a significant line move despite UCLA riding a 3-game NCAA Tournament winning streak.

“UCLA is definitely peaking at the right time,” Bogdanovich notes. “But the sharps are all over Alabama, and the public will be more on Alabama than UCLA. It’s good that UCLA is playing well, because it’ll shorten the decision a little.”

I chip-in a Sweet 16 betting breakdown and historical data at Offshore Gaming Association, and add the Sweet 16 market report and betting data from leading online sportsbooks for the Sweet 16 in my update at TheLines.

Sweet 16 Odds

https://twitter.com/WilliamHillUS/status/1374408192273227779

Much more market updates and information you can bet on along wtih Sweet 16 game previews in my market report at TheLines.