NCAA Conference Tournament Betting

When it comes to NCAA conference tournament betting, you really have to start doing your homework because this is when the landscape can begin to change. Teams can be extremely motivated or they can simply be going through the motions.

And guess what, it's up to the astute handicapper to know the difference. Not only this, but a team could play 3, 4, or even 5 games in the same amount of days. You also have to recognize where the games are being played to factor in any kind of home court advantage.

Most people will just think it's at a neutral court when that can be far from the case in a lot of tournaments. I think you see the point I'm getting at...a little more time and preparation must be done on your part if you're going to turn a profit with NCAA conference tournament betting.

We'll go into much more detail of the scenarios listed above to hopefully give you some insight on how the post season can be a different animal. Again though, as I always say, these are simply some basic tips and strategies to get you going in the right direction.

It's up to you to apply your own strategies to your handicapping. You can certainly find some profitable conference tournament positions, but it may take a little more legwork on your part.

So let's take a look at a few tips and strategies you can apply to the post season tournaments...but don't forget, it's up to you to handicap each game on a individual basis.

As you probably know by now, lines tend to get tighter the further into the regular season...simply because there's much more data for oddsmakers to use when creating lines. However, conference tournaments can be a little difficult because there are other factors to consider when creating the line.

A few of the other factors are listed below, but a major one is public perception. Oddsmakers still have to factor this in, which means the lines will still need to be shaded a bit to factor in public tendencies, thus resulting in value for sharp handicappers.

There's no sure fire way to say who to play and who to fade, but you probably know the popular teams in college basketball and you definitely should know who the public favorites are in the conference(s) you specialize in.

Public perception is a handicappers best friend and it can give you even more of an advantage when it comes to post season betting. So with that said, look to take underdogs where the line maybe shaded 2-3 points toward the public favorite.

Yes I know, I'm really telling you something top secret with this one, but it's an important factor to look at when it comes to your NCAA conference tournament betting. Let's face it, some teams simply have much more to play for than others.

Teams that are trying to make it to the tournament are important to recognize, but don't get me wrong, they can also be good fade material too...depending on how they got into their "bubble" circumstance.

I personally like to look at motivated underdogs playing the conference darlings who already have a ticket to the Big Dance. Now I'm certainly not saying they will beat the big favorite, but if they're getting 12 points when my line comes in at 9, then you better believe I'm taking the underdog.

Those scrappy underdogs who will fight until the buzzer are who you want to be betting on. They have everything on the line and you know you'll get 110% from them.

I love this tip and it's one that has definitely served me well over the years. Believe it or not, but not all conferences play their tournament games at neutral courts (and even some of them aren't exactly neutral).

Some of the mid and smaller conferences will actually play their first couple of rounds at the higher seeds home court before moving to a neutral court. A lot of handicappers don't take the time to recognize this, but it's obviously a very important factor.

Also, in some conferences, the entire tournament will be played at the home court of the team who won the regular season conference...basically giving that team a tremendous advantage throughout.

Now while the big conferences play their games at "neutral courts", it's certainly not a true "neutral court." One or two teams within the conference will be located pretty close to where games are being played, thus resulting in somewhat of a home court advantage.

What it comes down to is you always need to check where games are held because it can play a major role in your handicapping (this is also extremely important to recognize in the NCAA Tournament as well)

NCAA Conference Tournament Betting -
Little Time To Prepare (after the first game)

If a team has won the first game, then they'll be turning right back around and playing the next day...in other words, they're going to have little time to prepare for the opponent.

Granted, they may have already played the team twice during the regular season, but it's important to recognize that teams who have a distinct style of play can be very difficult to prepare for.

Teams who have a unique style of play can be very advantageous to the sharp handicapper. It's those types of teams you want to keep a very close eye on in the conferences you specialize in.

Obviously, conference tournament games are played on consecutive days, thus resulting in little rest. In larger conferences, where higher seeds receive bye's, you could see lower seeds playing 2, 3, 4, or more days in a row.

It's those teams who have been playing on their third day in a row you want to pay special attention too. However, it's a very fine line between being worn out and determined...and trust me, it can be difficult to tell the difference.

You want to look for teams who have shown signs of fatigue in their game prior, but still found a way to advance to the next round. It's those teams that are just holding on you want to play against.

As I said before, it can be a fine line, but tired teams are very profitable to bet against. You do have to play the part of a sports psychiatrist (and don't forget to read or watch the coaches post game press conferences for information as well), but nice opportunities can be found when going against worn out teams.

So there we have it, a few tips and strategies to help you with your NCAA conference tournament betting. They certainly aren't groundbreaking nor will they make you rich in the postseason.

However, they are a good starting point when handicapping conference tournaments. A little more time and effort is needed when it comes to these games, but I can assure you that profitable opportunities can be found.

Now that we've covered NCAA conference tournament betting, let's turn our attention to the mother of them all...The Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament. As always, best of luck in all your sports betting endeavors.

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