No Clear Cut College Basketball Favorite as Season Opens
Scott Morris | November 13, 2015
Many of the offshore sportsbooks and Vegas odds makers have posted college basketball tips off its season on Friday without a clear cut betting favorite to win the NCAA Title in 2016, according to the odds that.
The usual teams seemed to have risen to the top of the futures boards, but no team has a price shorter than 7 to 1.
Perennial favorite Kentucky started last season as a 9 to 5 favorite to win it all, which was an anomaly as championship odds so low to begin a season are quite rare.
Kentucky was ousted in the Final Four by Wisconsin, but the Wildcats, led by John Calipari enter the new season with much less experience and overall depth losing four of their players to the NBA draft. Nevertheless, Kentucky has been penciled in by odds makers as a co-favorite to win the national title at 7 to 1 with the Maryland Terrapins.
Maryland has come out of almost nowhere to reach co-favorite status amongst odds makers. The Terrapins were helped by landing Rasheed Sulaimon a transfer from Duke and Diamond Stone the top high school recruit.
The North Carolina Tar Heels will have to play without Marcus Paige their starting point guard for a number of weeks due to the guard breaking his hand. The Tar Heels are third at 8 to 1 to start the season.
Kansas it sitting at 10 to 1 and in fourth, even though some sportswriters have given them the No. 1 ranking in the nation.
However, another writer said it was difficult to thinks of a team like the Jayhawks winning the National Title when no player who plays substantial minutes has ever played past the Sweet 16.
However, KU has talent and could become very good or even great during the course of the season.
Defending national champions the Duke Blue Devils lost three of their top players to the NBA and are sitting at 12 to 1 odds to start the season.
Last season’s other participants in the Final Four, Wisconsin and Michigan State are further down the list. Michigan State is at 20 to 1, while Wisconsin has fallen to 80 to 1.
