Wondering who will win the Masters this year?  A good place to start is at Sportsbook.com.  They’ve posted their odds on who is going to win the biggest event in golf this year.  Of course Tiger Woods leads the pack as the favorite, but what is truly amazing about Tiger is that he’s one of the only golfers who can come into any tournament, let alone a collection of the best players in the world, and be favored so heavily that you actually have to risk more than you can win.  Right now Tiger is at 5/6, basically meaning you’d need to pay $6 for the chance to win $5.  That’s pretty incredible considering the next best according to the sportsbook is Phil Mickelson at 10/1, of course meaning you could bet just $1 and win $10 if he ends up taking the jacket.  There are plenty of capable golfers out there, but when Tiger is on there’s simply no one better.  While in most cases you would never recommend to “bet against” Woods, I think you’d have to explore some other options from a bet-value point of view.  Els at 12-1 or, my favorite, “The Field” at 15-1 are just better betting options no matter how confident anyone is that Tiger Woods will win the 2008 Masters.  Here’s a complete listing of the Odds to Win the 2008 Masters from Sportsbook.com:

    Tiger Woods  5 - 6    
 
    Phil Mickelson  10 - 1    
 
    Ernie Els  12 - 1    
 
    Field (Any Other Golfers)  15 - 1    
 
    KJ Choi  25 - 1    
 
    Adam Scott  30 - 1    
 
    Vijay Singh  30 - 1    
 
    Padraig Harrington  30 - 1    
 
    Jim Furyk  35 - 1    
 
    Justin Rose  35 - 1    
 
    Rory Sabbatini  40 - 1    
 
    Sergio Garcia  40 - 1    
 
    Retief Goosen  50 - 1    
 
    Luke Donald  50 - 1    
 
    Henrik Stenson  50 - 1    
 
    Steve Stricker  50 - 1    
 
    Mike Weir  60 - 1    
 
    Aaron Baddeley  60 - 1    
 
    Stewart Cink  60 - 1    
 
    Geoff Ogilvy  60 - 1    
 
    Zach Johnson  60 - 1    
 
    Sean OHair  70 - 1    
 
    Ryan Moore  75 - 1    
 
    Vaughn Taylor  75 - 1    
 
    Heath Slocum  75 - 1    
 
    Nick Watney  75 - 1    
 
    Stephen Ames  75 - 1    
 
    Lee Westwood  75 - 1    
 
    Fred Couples  75 - 1    
 
    Justin Leonard  80 - 1    
 
    Chris DiMarco  80 - 1    
 
    Trevor Immelman  80 - 1    
 
    Paul Casey  80 - 1    
 
    David Toms  80 - 1    
 
    Angel Cabrera  80 - 1    
 
    Stuart Appleby  80 - 1    
 
    Hunter Mahan  85 - 1    
 
    Jason Day  100 - 1    
 
    Richard Green  100 - 1    
 
    Bubba Watson  100 - 1    
 
    Charl Schwartzel  100 - 1    
 
    Camilo Villegas  100 - 1    
 
    Miguel Angel Jimenez  100 - 1    
 
    Jonathan Byrd  100 - 1    
 
    John Senden  100 - 1    
 
    Carl Pettersson  100 - 1    
 
    Thomas Bjorn  100 - 1    
 
    John Rollins  100 - 1    
 
    Bernhard Langer  100 - 1    
 
    Charley Hoffman  100 - 1    
 
    John Daly  100 - 1    
 
    Anders Hansen  100 - 1    
 
    Brett Wetterich  100 - 1    
 
    Nathan Green  100 - 1    
 
    JJ Henry  100 - 1    
 
    Tom Pernice Jr  100 - 1    
 
    Joe Durant  100 - 1    
 
    Robert Karlsson  100 - 1    
 
    Mark Calcavecchia  100 - 1    
 
    Tom Lehman  100 - 1    
 
    Shaun Micheel  100 - 1    
 
    Ben Curtis  100 - 1    
 
    Bradley Dredge  100 - 1    
 
    Nick Dougherty  100 - 1    
 
    Peter Lonard  100 - 1    
 
    Bo Van Pelt  100 - 1    
 
    Tim Herron  100 - 1    
 
    Fred Funk  100 - 1    
 
    Michael Campbell  100 - 1    
 
    Rich Beem  100 - 1    
 
    Brian Bateman  100 - 1    
 
    Todd Hamilton  100 - 1    
 
    Mark Omeara  100 - 1    
 
    Drew Weaver  100 - 1    
 
    Tom Watson  100 - 1    
 
    Charles Howell III  100 - 1    
 
    Tim Clark  100 - 1    
 
    Jose Maria Olazabal  100 - 1    
 
    Niclas Fasth  100 - 1    
 
    Scott Verplank  100 - 1    
 
    Kenny Perry  100 - 1    
 
    Andres Romero  100 - 1    
 
    Robert Allenby  100 - 1    
 
    Davis Love III  100 - 1    
 
    Rod Pampling  100 - 1    
 
    Arron Oberholser  100 - 1    
 
    Darren Clarke  100 - 1    
 
    Ian Poulter  100 - 1    
 
    Richard Sterne  100 - 1    
 
    Lucas Glover  100 - 1    
 
    Brandt Snedeker  100 - 1    
 
    Boo Weekley  100 - 1    
 
    David Howell  100 - 1    
 
    Chad Campbell  100 - 1    
 
    Colin Montgomerie  100 - 1    
 
    Jerry Kelly  100 - 1    
 
    Anthony Kim  100 - 1    
 
    Woody Austin  100 - 1    
 
    Nick OHern  100 - 1    
 
    Pat Perez  100 - 1   

Popularity: 100% [?]

It’s time to get excited about MLB betting!  For far too long, Major League Baseball has taken a backseat to the other major sports in the world of sports betting.  Most people are under the impression that there are no profits to be made in betting on baseball.  They couldn’t be more wrong!  MLB betting has more potential than any other sport to make you money and, when you bet intelligently based on value, there is significantly less risk involved.  MLB bets are almost always based on the money line.  That means that there is no point spread involved, if you pick a winning side on the money line, your team simply has to win.  So, what makes this concept any different, or better, than betting on the more conventional sports like football and basketball?  Money line MLB betting allows the bettor to risk less money in order to profit when you bet on underdogs.  Underdogs are simply the team that the sportsbook thinks will lose the game, the bigger the underdog, the bigger the payout. 

For example, we will say Tampa Bay is playing Boston.  Most bettors, and therefore most sportsbooks, are definitely going to have Boston favored in this game, perhaps by as much as 2 to 1.  Their logic is that the Red Sox have twice as good of a chance to win than do the Devil Rays.  If you polled the general public over the past several seasons, you’d likely have the large majority of people say that the Red Sox would easily win any given game against the Devil Rays as well, in fact, they might be willing to put money on it. 

Let’s take a look at what would have happened to these hypothetical people had they put their money where their mouth is and bet the Red Sox on the money line every time they played the D-Rays throughout the 2006 MLB Season.  We will assume this particular person bet to win $100 on each game:

Boston Red Sox v. Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 2006

Series 1
Bet on Boston $146 to win $100 > Result: Loss -$146
Bet on Boston $128 to win $100 > Result: Loss -$128
Bet on Boston $120 to win $100 > Result: Win $100

Series 1 Results:  1-2 Record , Down $174

Series 2
Bet on Boston $153 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100
Bet on Boston $107 to win $100 > Result:  Loss -$107
Bet on Boston $194 to win $100 > Result:  Loss -$194
Bet on Boston $143 to win $100 > Result:  Loss -$143

Series 2 Results:  1-3 Record, Down $344

Series 3
Bet on Boston $185 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100
Bet on Boston $273 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100
Bet on Boston $107 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100
Bet on Boston $330 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100

Series 3 Results:  4-0 Record, Up $400

Series 4
Bet on Boston $172 to win $100 > Result:  Loss -$172
Bet on Boston $138 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100
Bet on Boston $150 to win $100 > Result:  Loss –$150

Series 4 Results:  1-2 Record, Down $222

Series 5
Bet on Boston $163 to win $100 > Result:  Loss -$163
Bet on Boston $295 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100
Bet on Boston $201 to win $100 > Result:  Win $100

Series 5 Results:  2-1 Record, Up $37

 

Overall Results:  9-8 Record, Down $303

These results speak volumes.  First, you may notice that the overall record was a winning one, however the net money gain was negative.  It is important to remember when choosing to bet on favorites, you are going to need to win a significantly higher percentage of your bets to see any profits.  What we need to look at is potential, which is really what is most important in MLB betting. 

Now, what if you would have bet on the D-Rays instead?  What would those results look like?  Well, for starters you would have gone 8-9, a losing record, but you would have won approximately $273!  As for potential there is no comparison, you were risking a total of $1,700 with the potential to win approximately $2,700!

Now, obviously it is much more difficult to pick underdogs to win, but when you put it into the perspective of risk versus reward it is definitely worth your time researching for MLB betting.     

Situations like this happen all the time.  Granted, it is not the norm, but if you know how to pick your spots you can profit this season for sure.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Now that the field has been set for the NCAA Men’s College Basketball Tournament, we’d like to take a look at who Vegas thinks is going to win it all.  As you might expect, the #1 seeds have the best odds.  North Carolina and UCLA are the odds-on favorites, both coming in at 4 to 1 to win the tournament.  Kansas and Memphis, the other two #1 seeds, are coming in at 5/1 and 6/1 respectively, so, according to Las Vegas odds makers, one of the number one seeds is likely to win the NCAA Championship.  But you don’t need us to tell you that the #1 seeds are the favorites to win the tourney, that’s why they are ranked #1, right?  What we’re more interested in, and what you’re probably more interested in, is which teams could make a run at the tournament that have odds that are a little more in your favor.  The first two teams I’d consider are Texas and Duke, both with 14 to 1 odds to win it all.  You aren’t looking at a monster pay off if one of them does win it all, but I feel that both Duke and Texas have just as good a chance to win the title as a team like Memphis or UCLA and you have to love 14 to 1 compared to 6 to 1 or worse.  Other teams I like in the field to possibly make a run are Wisconsin at 20/1, Stanford at 25/1, and Pitt at 30/1.  These are teams that, if they catch fire, could make a legitimate run in the tournament.  Granted, it would be difficult to do, but the possibility is enough for me to put them on this list.  There are two 40/1 teams that I also like, UConn and Clemson.  These are teams that struggled a little down the stretch, but teams I could see making it deep into the tournament and possibly upsetting one of the big guns in the bracket.  Well, those are our opinions on the recently released odds for the NCAA Basketball Tournament.  Here is the complete listing of the odds from BodogLife.com so you can form your own opinions: 

American 2000/1
 
Arizona 80/1

Arkansas 150/1
 
Austin Peay 1000/1
 
Baylor 150/1
 
Belmont 1500/1
 
Boise State 750/1
 
Butler 100/1
 
BYU 200/1
 
Cal State Fullerton 1500/1
 
Clemson 40/1
 
Connecticut 40/1
 
Coppin State 2500/1
 
Cornell 750/1
 
Davidson 150/1
 
Drake 80/1
 
Duke 14/1
 
George Mason 500/1
 
Georgetown 14/1
 
Georgia 250/1
 
Gonzaga 125/1
 
Indiana 100/1
 
Kansas 5/1
 
Kansas State 75/1
 
Kent State 200/1
 
Kentucky 150/1
 
Louisville 18/1
 
Marquette 55/1
 
Memphis 6/1
 
Miami Florida 100/1
 
Michigan State 50/1
 
Mississippi State 80/1
 
Mississippi Valley State 2500/1
 
Mount St. Mary’s 2500/1
 
North Carolina 4/1
 
Notre Dame 60/1
 
Oklahoma 150/1
 
Oral Roberts 500/1
 
Oregon 150/1
 
Pittsburgh 30/1
 
Portland State 2500/1
 
Purdue 70/1
 
Saint Joseph’s 250/1
 
Saint Mary’s 150/1
 
San Diego 500/1
 
Siena 500/1
 
South Alabama 200/1
 
Stanford 25/1
 
Temple 300/1
 
Tennessee 18/1
 
Texas 14/1
 
Texas A&M 200/1
 
Texas Arlington 2000/1
 
UCLA 4/1
 
UMBC 2000/1
 
UNLV 250/1
 
USC 45/1
 
Vanderbilt 50/1
 
Villanova 250/1
 
Washington State 40/1
 
Western Kentucky 500/1
 
West Virgnia 125/1
 
Winthrop 500/1
 
Wisconsin 20/1
 
Xavier 35/1

Popularity: 38% [?]

With March Madness just a week away and Selection Sunday coming this weekend, it’s time to prepare to fill out your bracket!  Before we jump right into the tips, let’s get a few things out of the way.  First off, you are going to run into thousands of tips on the Internet on how to win your NCAA bracket.  So what makes our list so much better?  Well, it pains me to say it, but nothing, really.  The fact of the matter is that we are providing tips, and they are by no means perfect.  Could they help?  Sure!  Could they ruin your bracket?  We hope not!  Basically, what we’ve done is gone out and collected as many good tips as we could.  Because there are so many to pick from out there, we were hoping to compile a list that sorted through all the BS and gave you the tips that really matter and I think we’ve accomplished that.  Now, I certainly don’t want to discourage you, but the last thing I want to say before getting into the list is that you aren’t going to fill out a perfect bracket this year.  You probably won’t ever fill out a perfect bracket in your lifetime.  I know that’s discouraging, but keep in mind that you won’t need to go undefeated to win your pool and have fun during March Madness cheering your teams on.  You know how you always hear about the odds to win the lottery?  How it’s more likely to get struck by lightning, or freeze to death, or whatever ridiculous scenario they can come up with, than it is to win the lottery?  Ha!  Whoever said that must not be a very big basketball fan.  The odds to win the Powerball Lottery are just over 146 million to 1.  Compare that to the odds to fill out a perfect NCAA Tournament bracket, which comes in at well over 9 quintillion to 1 (9 quintillion is a 9 with 18 zeroes behind it), and you can clearly see how difficult it would be to pull off the perfect picks through every round of the tournament.  Now that I’ve said all of that and given you some fun facts, let’s get to our NCAA Tournament Tips list already!

(Almost) Anything Goes In The First Round
This is pretty basic, but an important tip to remember.  Don’t give your bracket the kiss-of-death and pick any 16 seeds to beat 1 seeds (and normally not any 15 seeds to beat 2 seeds), but just about everything else goes!  You have to ignore the favorites in these match ups and pick some low seeds.  It might go against logic, but face it, the better-seeded team does not always win.  Also keep in mind that since 1989 there has been only one NCAA Tournament in which a 12th seeded team did not beat a 5th seeded team, so you should pick one or more 12 seeds to win in the first round, but be selective!

Seed Difference Matters
This conflicts a little with our first tip, but remember not to put all of your eggs in one basket, you’ll need a balanced approach to win your pool!  Throughout the history of the NCAA Tournament you’ll find that a seed difference of 4 or more leads to an 80% chance of victory.  So, if a 3 seed is playing 9 seed (a seed difference of 6), 80% of the time the 3 seed will win.  That means that the majority of your picks in the first round should be favorites, but you do need to pick and choose some upsets if you are going to beat your competition.

A #1 Seed Is Pretty Sweet
Another great stat that will help you on your way to winning your NCAA Tournament pool is that historically #1 seeds have an 84% chance of making it to at least the Sweet 16.  That means that at least three, and probably all four, of the #1 seeds in your bracket should advance to the Sweet 16.  I do realize there are always upset opportunities, and my advice is to pick them when you truly feel it’s the right pick, just be aware of the odds that are against you!

They Call It The “Elite 8″ For A Reason
Once you get to the Elite 8 portion of your bracket, try to clear your mind and start over.  Once we hit that point in the tournament, the best teams are the best teams.  If a “Cinderella” team slips into your Elite 8, that’s great, just don’t go sending them to the Final Four.  Use your head once you get to that point.  Normally, the better seed is going to win, or the team that is favored according to the Vegas odds.  Imagine which of your teams will be favored, not who you want to win, and advance them to the Final Four.  The really good teams are there for a reason, the lower seeds are just happy to be there at that point and they are likely running on fumes. 

Hopefully all, or at least a few, of these tips were helpful, or at least gave you some information you might not have known.  Good luck with your brackets and enjoy March Madness!!!

Popularity: 60% [?]

Thursday, March 13th we’ll get a chance to see the Big 12 in action as its men’s conference championship starts up.  Perhaps more than any other conference, the Big 12 is a top-heavy conference.  There are two elite teams in this race, Kansas and Texas, then four teams we’d consider “near the front of the pack” in Kansas State, Baylor, Texas A&M, and Oklahoma, followed by a big gap with Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, and Missouri, and an even bigger gap with Iowa State and Colorado finishing way behind the rest.  The point being, if Kansas or Texas isn’t hoisting up the Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship trophy this Sunday, you better stay home on Monday because something in the universe isn’t right.  That being said, I do like Kansas State and Michael Beasley, who is unquestionably the best player in college basketball this season (side note:  if you haven’t seen the kid play, you owe it to yourself as a basketball fan to check out one of K-State’s games ASAP!).  Baylor has been great surprise in the conference this season, but I don’t see them getting past Oklahoma in the second round of the tournament, assuming they throttle Colorado like they should.  Oklahoma and Texas A&M are teams that should be labeled “dangerous” as they could knock off one of the top teams in this tourney.  The remaining teams in the conference will be in the tournament, but I don’t expect they’ll be there very long.  For a full listing of the odds to win the Big 12 Conference Championship as posted at BetUs.com, see below:

Odds to Win the NCAA Men’s Big 12 Conference Tournament

Kansas  5/6  

Texas  3/1  

Kansas State 15/2  

Baylor  10/1  

Oklahoma 15/2  

Texas A&M 12/1  

Texas Tech 20/1  

Oklahoma State 20/1  

Nebraska 25/1  

Missouri 30/1  

IowaState 75/1  

Colorado 100/1  

Popularity: 12% [?]

The Big East Conference Championship Tournament tips off Wednesday with Villanova playing Syracuse at Noon EST, running straight through until the final whistle of the Marquette/Seton Hall game which doesn’t tip off until 9:00 PM EST.  There are about 8 teams in this field of 12 that could legitimately make a run for the Big East title.  The four teams with a first round bye, Georgetown, UConn, Louisville, and Notre Dame obviously have a leg up on the competition, but nothing is promised in a conference this good.  West Virginia, Marquette, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and Villanova are teams that might make a run with a little bit of luck on their side as they are all excellent basketball teams. 

The favorite in this field has to be Georgetown.  They are ranked #9 in the nation and have the best conference and overall record in the Big East.  During the regular season, however, the Hoyas did lose to Syracuse, Louisville, and Pittsburgh so they are by no means invincible.  In fact, the Hoyas will face either Villanova or Syracuse in Georgetown’s first tournament game, so they may have to play the Orange for a third time after losing to them early in the season and barely pulling out a 64-62 victory the second time they met.  With all of that being said, Georgetown is the clear pick to win this thing, though Louisville is not far behind. 

The beauty of this tournament is the tremendous talent from top to bottom.  I can’t think of another conference tournament where there are 8 legitimate contenders.  UConn and Marquette are my dark horse picks to grab the title, but, in the Big East, there really isn’t a dark horse to pick from.

Here are the odds to win the Big East Conference Tournament as Posted at BetUS.com:

Georgetown 2/1
Louisville 5/2
Notre Dame 11/2
Connecticut 11/2
West Virginia 8/1
Marquette 8/1
Pittsburgh 10/1
Syracuse 15/1
Villanova 20/1
Providence 40/1
Seton Hall 45/1
Cincinnati 50/1

Popularity: 10% [?]

The 2008 baseball season is fast approaching and, as always, the lines for the team most likely to win the World Series have been posted.  This year the returning World Series Champions, the Boston Red Sox are favored to repeat their performance coming in at 4-1 to win the Fall Classic.  The Red Sox are followed by a pair of New York teams, with both the Yankees and Mets commanding equal respect at 5-1.  The Detroit Tigers are next at 6-1, but after that you’ve got quite the drop-off.  From 6-1 we jump all the way to the 10-1 Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians, then on down to the LAA Angels at 14-1.  If your team didn’t make it into the the teams previously listed, sorry, but your team has at least 20-1 odds to win the World Series this year.  Not to worry, however, the Colorado Rockies got to the series last season as a 55-1 shot.  My advice to you would be that, if you are going to wager on the team to win the World Series this year, don’t bet too much with your heart.  There are plenty of teams that could get hot in the post-season and make a run at the series, but there are also plenty of teams that won’t even sniff the playoffs (see the teams with the 100-1 odds? You’ll probably want to stay away from them unless you know something that I don’t).  Anyway, these bets are mostly for fun and if the team you bet on before the season starts makes it to the post-season it can be really fun, just don’t go blowing a stack on the Twins thinking you are going to get paid off at 60-1.  Good luck this baseball season, it should be a good one!

Arizona Diamondbacks 20-1

Atlanta Braves 20-1

Baltimore Orioles 100-1

Boston RedSox 4-1

Chicago Cubs 10-1

Chicago White Sox 30-1

Cincinnati Reds 60-1

Cleveland Indians 10-1

Colorado Rockies 25-1

Detroit Tigers 6-1

Florida Marlins 100-1

Houston Astros 60-1

Kansas City Royals 100-1

Los Angeles Angels 14-1

Los Angeles Dodgers 18-1

Milwaukee Brewers 30-1

Minnesota Twins 60-1

New York Mets 5-1

New York Yankees 5-1

Oakland Athletics 100-1

Philadelphia Phillies 20-1

Pittsburgh Pirates 100-1

San Diego Padres 30-1

San Francisco Giants 100-1
 
Seattle Mariners 30-1

St. Louis Cardinals 60-1

Tampa Bay Rays 100-1

Texas Rangers 100-1

Toronto Blue Jays 30-1

Washington Nationals 100-1

Bet on the World Series and much more at SportsBook.com!

Popularity: 31% [?]

#1 North Carolina (28-2) @ #5 Duke (26-3)
This is the second installment this season of one of the best rivalries in any sport at any level.  The first showdown was a decisive Duke victory at North Carolina as the Blue Devils beat the Tar Heels 89-78 just over a month ago.  As you’re already aware, a lot can change in a month, particularly in college basketball.  Since the Duke loss, UNC has won 7 in a row and has earned the #1 ranking in the nation.  After beating their talent rivals Duke has managed a 6-2 record, but losses at Wake Forest and Miami were games that the Devils were expected to win.  The best angle to look at in this situation is revenge.  North Carolina was out-played by Duke in the first meeting, but I’m still of the opinion that they are the more talented squad.  Now that North Carolina is the #1 team in the nation I think they have the confidence and swagger it’s going to take to go into Duke and beat them on their home court.  Surprisingly, 4 out of the last 5 match ups in this series has been won by the visiting team, a stat that shows the intensity of this rivalry and a stat that gives me all the more confidence in picking North Carolina.  One paper the teams match up well, UNC is the more offensive-oriented team with Duke having slightly better defensive stats.  The fact is that you can throw all of that out the window tonight because in one of the biggest games of the year in college basketball between the most storied rivalry in the sport, you have to go with momentum and you have to go with motivation.  North Carolina Has both tonight.

College Hoops Pick:  North Carolina Tar Heels +1

Popularity: 10% [?]

There is a little more than a month left in the NBA regular season, but the MVP Candidates for the 2007-2008 campaign are already shaping up.  Right now it is more than likely a two-man race with a few other players on the outside looking in.  It’s become more of a cliche than anything, but you do have to remember that the player selected for the MVP is not necessarily the best player in the NBA, but the player that is the most valuable to his team throughout the season.  Now, many times those two distinctions can be the same players, but as we’ve seen in the past with Steve Nash, it is not always the case.  That’s not a knock on Nash by any means, but to say he’s a better overall player than Kobe or LeBron I think would be a mistake, however, in his role he was certainly deserving of the MVP awards he has won.

#1 - LeBron James - Cleveland Cavs
Let’s face it, the Cavs would not be a playoff team without LeBron, in fact, they may end up missing the playoffs this year if they aren’t careful.  If Cleveland does make it to the playoffs I think you have to consider James as the top pick for the MVP award.  He’s leading the league in scoring with 30.8 points per game, but he also has more assists per game (7.5) than any of the other top 10 scorers in the league.  He also holds the edge on the majority of the top scorers in rebounds with 8 boards per game.  Only Amare Stoudemire, Dirk Nowitzki, and Chris Bosh have more rebounds per game than LeBron with significantly less points and significantly more height on their side.  LeBron is the complete package.  He’s everything he was billed to more.  He’s all of 23 years old, but this year he stands to win his first of what I believe will be many MVP awards.

#2 - Kobe Bryant - L.A. Lakers
Can you believe the Kobe has never won an MVP award?  He’s one of the premiere scorers in the league, 2nd only to LeBron, but his team is on a tear (currently tied for the best record in the West with San Antonio), and he does a lot of the things that Lebron does well, though James still holds a small statistical edge in most categories.  Kobe’s talent has never been questioned, but his ability to carry a team without the help of Shaq has been in question since the big fella left.  This is Kobe’s first legitimate chance to prove he’s the new leader of this team and that, with a little help, he can lead the Lakers back to the promise land.  I would be happy with Kobe as the MVP this season.  LeBron clearly has better stats, but Kobe is on a much better team and that could ultimately be the deciding factor for MVP voters.

#3 -  Allen Iverson - Denver Nuggets
The third spot on this list was a tough one to pick.  There are plenty of deserving candidates, but I went with the players I felt most improves the players around him, and that player is Allen Iverson.  Not only is he 3rd on the scoring list with 26.8 points per game, but he dishes out 7.3 assists, plus draws a lot of fouls and shoots over 80% from the free throw line.  The Nuggets should make the playoffs and that’s what gives Iverson the edge over a guy like Dwyane Wade, who has similar stats.  Amare Stoudemire and Dirk Nowitzki could also be considered, but they aren’t having the kind of stand out seasons that you expect from an MVP.  The other player that could have been listed in front of Iverson is his teammate, Carmelo Anthony, but I truly believe his success is fueled by Iverson’s play.  Anthony has always had great talent, but since Iverson has come to Denver he has really flourished.  Iverson has taken plenty of knocks throughout his career for being a selfish player, but the statistics tell a different story.  Here is a guy who is barely 6 feet tall who grinds it out every game and finds ways to get his teammates the ball while still putting up the impressive scoring numbers.  In my book , that’s enough justification for his spot on this list.

Popularity: 34% [?]

College basketball fans all over the nation will come together two weeks from today (Thursday, March 20th) for the tip-off of the NCAA Hoops Championship Tournament.  There’s no doubt that there will be thousands of ways to wager games throughout the tournament, not to mention the countless number of brackets that you’re probably going to fill out.  Today I want to take a look at a slightly different betting angle and examine the odds on each conference to win the NCAA Tournament.  Initially I was thinking that wagering on the conference you think will win was kind of pointless.  If you have a team that you favor to win, why not just bet on them?  You get much better odds.  But, what’s great about betting the conference, particularly conferences with more teams in the tournament, you really do increase your odds to win your wager.  I’m all about increasing my odds to win during March Madness, so, needless to say, I am fairly intrigued by this futures bet.  We’ll take a quick look at the favorite conferences, the ones in the middle, and those conferences that might be flying under the radar, plus give you a rundown of which teams might make a splash in the tournament.

Odds On Which Conference Will Win The 2007-2008 NCAA Basketball Tournament - Odds by BetUs.com

Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) -  5/2
With both Duke and North Carolina it’s pretty hard not make the ACC  the favorite conference to win the tournament. 

Pacific-10 Conference (PAC-10) - 3/1
The PAC-10 has three teams that are currently in the top 25:  #3 UCLA, #7 Stanford, #23 Washington State.  There are a few 2nd-Tier teams that may sneak in the tournament from the PAC-10, but it’s doubtful they will make it very deep into the tournament. 

Big 12 Conference - 13/4
The Big 12 has some ridiculous talent.  It also looks like they will get around 6 teams in the NCAA bracket, which is impressive in itself.  Kansas is certainly one of the favorites to make a run at the Championship, though Texas is built for tournament play and could also make their mark.  Kansas State, Texas A&M, Baylor, and Oklahoma are all very likely candidates to make it to the big dance.  With all of these talented teams you have to like the odds that any one of them will be holding the championship title when it’s all said and done.

Conference USA - 5/1
Frankly, I’m a little surprised by this number.  Sure, Conference USA might get 3 teams in (Memphis, UAB, and Houston), but to think that any team from this conference other than the Memphis Tigers will have a chance to run the table is unwise!  Trust me, you’re better off betting on Memphis straight-up at 8/1 odds if you are thinking they are the team that’s going to win it all.

Big East Conference - 13/2
The Big East is tough to read for the tournament because they have the most teams of any other conference currently in the Top 25 with five teams, but they also have no team ranked in the top 10 in the nation.  There are going to be a ton of teams from this conference from the tournament for sure.  Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame, UConn, and Marquette are all but guaranteed a bid, and you could make a case for West Virginia and Pittsburgh to make the trip as well.  The Big East might end up giving you the most teams for your buck, but, apart from Georgetown, I don’t think any of them are true contenders for the title.

Big 10 Conference - 12/1
The Big 10 is another conference that could get in between 4 and 6 teams, but only one or two of them can be considered a real threat to win it all.  Wisconsin and Indiana could conceivably make a run while teams like Purdue, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Minnesota have a chance to get to the big dance, but little chance of making an impact.

Southeastern Confernce (SEC) - 15/1
Tennessee and Vanderbilt get top billing in the SEC, and with good reason.  The SEC will probably get a few more teams in the tournament and the race is between Kentucky, Florida, Mississippi State, Arkansas, and Ole Miss.  Unless you are hanging your hopes on Tennessee, you’ll probably want to stay out of the SEC.

The Field (All other Conferences) - 15/1
Don’t count “The Field” out of your consideration.  There are plenty of teams in the mid-major conferences that could give the big dogs a run for their money (think about George Mason a few years ago making it to the Final Four).  So, here’s our run-down of mid-major teams that have a chance to go deep in the tournament:  Xavier, Butler, Drake, Illinois State, Davidson, Gonzaga, and St. Mary’s.

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