The NCAA men’s basketball tournament started Tuesday but the real Madness gets going Thursday, St. Patrick’s Day, with 16 games from noon until past midnight.
All involved in mobile New York sports betting eagerly have anticipated March Madness, traditionally the second largest sporting event to wager on in the United States, behind only the Super Bowl.
Not only is the tournament back to full-fledged Madness with big crowds in arenas after two years affected by COVID-19, the action will be played for the first time since the state of New York launched mobile wagering back on Jan. 8.
EmpireStakes.com can help you along the way, with its guide to the best New York sportsbooks for betting on March Madness.
Colgate Holds Flag for New York
One New York university made this year’s field. Colgate, a 14th seed, will play third-seeded Wisconsin (24-7) in the first round of the Midwest Region on Friday at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Tipoff is scheduled for 9:50 p.m. ET on TBS.
You won’t be able to bet that one in New York, though, since the Empire State prohibits betting on college games involving in-state teams.
By the way, Colgate (23-11) is an 8-point underdog (+245 moneyline) on DraftKings in New Jersey. Wisconsin is a -310 favorite on the moneyline, with the over/under total points at 139.
Colgate, coached by Matt Langel, clinched its third Patriot League championship in four years with last Wednesday's 74-58 victory over Navy. That gives the Raiders a program-record 15-game winning streak heading into the NCAA Tournament, the third-longest active win streak in the nation.
Wisconsin (24-7, 15-5 Big Ten), which enters the tournament on a two-game losing streak, finished the regular season with a share of the Big Ten Conference title under head coach Greg Gard, who was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year.
The two teams have met just once before, in 2011, and Wisconsin won that matchup, 68-41. Colgate last played in Wisconsin in November 2019 and posted a 99-81 win over Green Bay.
Buffalo Hosts Madness Thursday, Saturday
In neighboring New Jersey, you are prohibited from betting on teams from the Garden State, and you also can’t bet on college events taking place within state lines.
That is not the case in New York, which means you can bet on the games being played Thursday and Saturday at KeyBank Center in Buffalo.
For the best NY sportsbook promos, keep checking EmpireStakes.com.
Here are the matchups with TV info and lines, per DraftKings (unless stated otherwise):
- No. 4 Midwest seed Providence Friars are a 2-point favorite over the 13th-seeded Jacrabbits of South Dakota State (truTV, 12:40). The over/under total points number is 149.5.
- No. 5 Midwest seed Iowa Hawkeyes vs. the 12th-seeded Richmond Spiders (truTV, 3:10). On BetMGM, Iowa is a 10.5-point favorite. The over-under is 150.5 points.
- No. 5 West seed Connecticut Huskies are a 6.5-point favorite over the 12th-seeded New Mexico State Aggies (TNT, 6:50). The over/under is 132 points.
- No. 4 West seed Arkansas Razorbacks are a 5-point favorite over the 13th-seeded Vermont Catamounts (TNT, 9:20). The over/under is 139 points.
March Madness moves on to the Sweet 16 and four regional sites from March 24-27.
The Final Four will be played in New Orleans with the semis Saturday, April 2 and the national title game on Monday night, April 4.
