The 2022 NCAA Tournament doesn’t happen until mid-March, but that doesn’t mean software sportsbook agents shouldn’t start preparing. Check out the top four predicted seeds for the West Region in San Francisco, the Midwest in Chicago, the East in Philadelphia, and the South Region in San Antonio. While most players remain transfixed on Super Bowl 56, pay per head agents must prepare for life after the NFL Championship. Soon after the winning team lifts the Lombardi Trophy, PPH sportsbook agents must turn to the 2022 March Madness hoops tournament.
The Big Dance attracts as much action, if not more, than the Super Bowl. Soon, players will call bookie agents looking to bet on teams to win the most electrifying sports tournament of the year.
Like with Super Bowl prop bets, agents must manage March Madness action. When it comes to the NCAA Tournament, agents must manage action before the first tourney game tips and while the tournament happens.
Every college hoops fan on the planet has created a pre-tournament bracket. Check out our predictions for each of the regions, as well as an analysis of each region.
Top Four Seeds in Each 2022 March Madness NCAA Tournament Region
NCAA Tournament Midwest Region – Chicago
- Baylor Bears
The defending champions have become a sports betting software favorite. But while the Bears started the season hot, they’ve become a play against the spread.
Baylor is just 12-9-1 ATS this season. The team isn’t close to being as talented as last season’s championship squad. So if your players want to dump on the Bears, encourage them to do so.
- Purdue Boilermakers
Most bracket prognosticators have the Boilermakers as a 1-seed. We don’t believe Purdue wins the Big Ten. Or if they do, they don’t escape without at least 7 losses.
Teams with 7 losses don’t often grab 1-seeds. Like Baylor, Purdue has just an okay ATS record. The Boilermakers are 11-10 after 21 games.
- Villanova Wildcats
Nova has a 12-9 ATS record heading into February. The Wildcats look like a solid squad to back.
But this is college hoops where home court means a lot. Jay Wright’s teams often make a run late in the season. So don’t be surprised if Villanova wins both the Big East Regular Season and the Big East Tournament.
- Michigan State Spartans
As of February 1, the Spartans are battling the Wisconsin Badgers, Purdue Boilermakers, and Illinois Illini for the Big Ten lead.
MSU is always a top Big Ten squad. So Sparty has a chance to win the conference.
Midwest Region March Madness Analysis 2022
Since 1995, Tom Izzo, Michigan State’s head coach, has gone to eight Final Fours. But Izzo has won just a single National Championship.
Because of Izzo’s record, your players most likely won’t back Sparty to win it all. Also, MSU requires some Selection Sunday luck to win multiple-round games.
Purdue hasn’t been to the Final Four since 1980. But so far, players consider Purdue a 2022 NCAA Tournament team to watch.
We’ll take the opposite approach and write that Purdue doesn’t appear to be one of this season’s four teams. So the Boilermakers aren’t a top squad, either.
Villanova and Baylor should garner some attention. Both are NCAA Tournament field favorites. Jay Wright is a master March Madness coach and it should be the same in 2022. Scott Drew’s Bears boast one of the best defenses in Division 1 Men’s Basketball.
NCAA Tournament East Region – Philadelphia
- UCLA Bruins
Gonzaga should secure the top spot in the West Region, which means if UCLA grabs a 1-seed, it will be in a different region. There is no stud squad on the East Coast.
No team as good as UCLA, Arizona, or Gonzaga, which is why the Bruins, whom we feel should win the Pac-12 over U-of-A, gets a 1-seed in the East.
- Kentucky Wildcats
After 21 games, John Calipari’s squad has a losing 10-11 ATS record. But although the Wildcats aren’t covering, Big Blue should finish no worse than second in the SEC. The conference winner will be Auburn, which means Kentucky grabs a 2-seed.
- Kansas Jayhawks
Rock Chalk Jayhawk is 9-11-1 ATS, making them a terrible team to cover in individual games. Bill Self, though, is a good tournament coach. So the Jayhawks could be tough once the March Madness Tournament starts.
- Illinois Illini
At 15-5 straight up, Illinois is just 2 games behind Big Ten leader Wisconsin for the Big Ten’s best record. All of February has yet to be played, which means the Illini, like Sparty, and like Wisconsin, can win the conference.
East Region March Madness 2022 Analysis
Kansas and Kentucky are NCAA Tournament field favorites. Even though the Jayhawks boast terrific player Ochai Agbaji, Kentucky looks like the better team this season.
Kentucky plays in the same conference as Auburn. If the Wildcats get a good draw on Selection Sunday, they could roll in their regional games.
Kansas looks no better than a second-round team. Although they hail from the same conference as Baylor and are often an NCAA Tournament juggernaut, the Jayhawks may not even make it to the March Madness Sweet 16.
UCLA can make the Final Four. But we predict that the Bruins get hosed by ending up in the East Region, which could end up the toughest in the NCAA Tournament field.
The Bruins are good enough to beat Kentucky, Kansas, and Illinois. But having to beat the Illini, which could enter the 2022 NCAA March Madness tourney under the radar, and then Kentucky will be more than challenging.
NCAA Tournament West Region – San Francisco
- Gonzaga Bulldogs
The Zags are a hop, a skip, and a jump from San Francisco, this season’s West Region site. Gonzaga boasts a talented lineup.
It’s not as talented as last season’s Division 1 Men’s Basketball runner-up squad, but the Zags will win the West Coast Conference like they do every season. On Selection Sunday, Gonzaga should end up with a 1-seed
- Duke Blue Devils
Duke hopes to make an NCAA Tournament title run in Coach K’s last season. The Devils should have a shot because freshman star Paolo Banchero plays for Duke.
The Blue Devils could end up with either a 1-seed or 2-seed on Selection Sunday. The ACC is often the best NCAA Division 1 conference in the nation.
But not this season. So the Dookies may not grab a 1. Whether Duke gets a 1 or 2, a trip to the Final Four is a real possibility.
- Wisconsin Badgers
Most feel the top conference in NCAA Division 1 is the Big Ten. Because of that belief, every Big Ten contender on Selection Sunday could end up with Top 4 seeds.
Wisconsin should have a successful 2022 NCAA Tournament. A Sweet 16 berth is possible. Heck, a Final Four trip is also possible.
- Alabama Crimson Tide
Can you think of a university as far from San Francisco in more ways than distance than Alabama? Probably not.
But the Tide, who may end up in third or fourth place in one of the nation’s deepest men’s basketball conferences, beat Gonzaga on the Zags’ floor. If the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide end up in the same bracket on Selection Sunday, who knows?
West Region March Madness 2022 Analysis
It will be tough for Gonzaga to win the West Region. The Zags play against West Coast Conference cupcakes, which is why they often enter the NCAA Tournament with no more than two losses.
But while the Zags should head to San Francisco a 1-seed, their conference schedule won’t set them up for success in the NCAA Tournament. Not only that, but the Zags grab a 1-seed on Selection Sunday every season.
Why would this season be any different? Gonzaga is a play against to make the Final Four. The Alabama Crimson Tide, the Wisconsin Badgers, and the Duke Blue Devils aren’t.
The Duke Blue Devils are NCAA Tournament royalty. The greatest coach in NCAA Division 1 hoops’ history, Mike Krzyzewski, is also one of the greatest coaches in NCAA Tournament history.
Coach K has called this season his last. So expect plenty of price per head action on the Dookies to win it all.
Duke hasn’t headed to the Final Four since 2015. The team Duke beat to win the NCAA Tournament was the Wisconsin Badgers.
Wisconsin is 12-8 ATS after 20 games. The Badgers have a throw down do it all player in Jonathan Davis. If Davis is on fire in the NCAA Tournament, he can lead the Badgers to the Final Four.
NCAA Tournament South Region – Philadelphia
- Auburn Tigers
Bruce Perl signed a $50.2 million contract that keeps him in Auburn until 2030. Pearl’s Tigers have become an NCAA Tournament juggernaut.
Auburn should continue to win, which means they’re the 1-seed in the South. There’s also a good chance Auburn is the overall 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament. Auburn has a real shot at making the Final Four.
- Arizona Wildcats
The Cats ditched scandal-prone Sean Miller during the offseason and hired Tommy Lloyd. Lloyd learned his craft under Mark Few, Gonzaga’s head coach.
Lloyd’s style of play has turned Arizona into the top-scoring team on average in the nation. If the Cats continue their high-scoring ways in the NCAA Tournament, they could be a Final Four squad.
- Houston Cougars
If this were football, Cincinnati would be on this list. But the Bearcats aren’t nearly as good at hoops as football.
Houston, though, is an excellent round-ball squad. Expect the Cougars to play the same type of defense that led to a Final Four appearance in last season’s NCAA Tournament.
- USC Trojans
USC is good enough to win no matter the bracket. The Trojans have an excellent inside-outside game with guard Boogie Ellis and dominating power forward Isaiah Mobley.
The Trojans should enter the NCAA Tournament under the radar. USC plays in the Pac-12, where teams like Arizona and UCLA also play.
The Trojans should find it challenging to win their conference, so USC is an outsider to make the Final Four.
South Region March Madness 2022 Analysis
The Auburn Tigers have become a Division 1 Men’s Basketball power. The alumni at Auburn know this, which is why they locked up Bruce Pearl before committing long-term to football coach Bryan Harsin.
Is the optimism in Auburn warranted? It is for the 2022 Division 1 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Auburn should win their conference. The Tigers are on the shortlist of teams to win the Final Four. Oddsmaking experts have yet to catch on to how good Auburn has become.
Pay per head bookie agents should set max betting limits on Auburn. As of February 1, only one team looks like a Final Four lock. That’s Auburn.
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