Most Likely Upsets for Thursday’s First Round Men’s College Basketball Tournament Games

It ain't fun to start the tournament on upset alert. But for some teams, that's just reality.

Whether it's for a bracket pool, scheduled viewing purposes, or anything else, it helps to know around which corners upsets could lurk. Today, we're going to use betting odds as our guide to see which higher seeds could have their seasons end early in Thursday's action.

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Today’s Most Likely Men’s College Basketball Tournament Upsets

As outlined above, we're going to view this through the lens of the bracket. Thus, we'll be defining an upset as a lower-seeded team winning over a team that was ranked higher during Sunday's selection process.

For Thursday's games, that distinction doesn't matter a ton because all of the lower-seeded teams are favored. Tomorrow's a different discussion.

But here are all 16 underdogs across Thursday's action. The moneyline column is simply their odds to win in FanDuel Sportsbook's college basketball betting odds. The "Implied Win Odds" simply translates that moneyline into how likely the sportsbook says they are to win that game.

The big one here is a team that has gotten plenty of helium in the post-bracket process in UC San Diego.

They face a Michigan team that ranks 328th in turnover rate, according to Bart Torvik, while UC San Diego is second in turnover defense. That's likely why betting markets have this pegged as such a close game.

If you're looking for someone higher than a 12 seed to pull an upset, FanDuel pegs 13 seeds Yale and High Point as the most likely culprits. After them, there's a pretty steep falloff with no other high-seeded teams having win odds above 11%.

Thus, if you're looking for the highest-seeded team to snag a win, UC San Diego seems to be the best route. Pivots off of them could be 11 seed VCU if you think Michigan hangs on or Yale, High Point, or 12 seed McNeese against Clemson.

Which bets stand out to you for today's games? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook's latest college basketball betting odds to see the full menu of options.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.

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