Top March Madness 2019 Picks Against The Spread Include Kentucky, Gonzaga, Syracuse On Day 1

The first-round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament will feature 16 teams competing in eight games on arguably the best day of the yearly sports calendar. More than half of the contests feature betting lines of eight points or more, creating the opportunity for several upsets to happen Thursday.

Much of the country will be focused on their brackets, but there will still be plenty of wagers placed on individual games. The gambling has already begun, and a few teams are getting significant support from the betting public against the spread.

No.1 Gonzaga is the biggest favorite on the first day of March Madness. That hasn’t stopped gamblers from laying more than 25 points. According to The Action Network, 70 percent of the bets have been placed on the Bulldogs to cover the 26.5-point spread against No.16 Fairleigh Dickinson.

Fairleigh Dickinson defeated No.16 Prairie View A&M in Tuesday’s play-in game.

No.2 Kentucky is Thursday’s second-biggest favorite. The SEC powerhouse has received 62 percent of the early bets for their game against No.15 Abilene Christian. Kentucky is laying 21.5 points after the betting line opened at 22.5 points.

Nearly three-quarters of the early bets are on No.11 Belmont, following their play-in win over No.11 Temple. The Bruins are 3.5-point underdogs against No.6 Maryland. Belmont made the field of 68 with an at-large bid with a 26-5 record after losing to Murray State in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship Game.

No.12 Murray State has received 62 percent of the bets as a four-point underdog against No.5 Marquette. The Racers are a popular upset pick in part because of star guard Ja Morant, who might be taken with the second overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.

No.8 Syracuse and No.9 Baylor will conclude Thursday’s action. The game only has a two-point spread, and 71 percent of the bets are on the favored Orange, per The Action Network.

No.13 Northeastern is a popular pick to cover the spread against No.4 Kansas. The same goes for No.13 Vermont and No.12 New Mexico State.