NCAAB bets: Cyclones should blow off Wildcats

It remains all college hoops here, with conference tourneys trucking on day-by-day. We're into the quarterfinals for many of the more notable conferences, and it's there our quest takes us today with a trio of teams that catch the eye.

Let's play quarters

Backing a pair of revenge spots

As we navigated through a few of the brackets today, we stopped by over at the Big 12 and A-10 to see what type of draws we've got. There seems to be two matchups in particular that hold similar narratives: a conference favorite is playing a team they recently lost to.

In the Big 12, it's Iowa State, ranked No. 7 nationally and the Big 12's No. 2 seed, playing against the No. 10 seed Kansas State Wildcats. The Cyclones have been one of the country's best teams this year thanks to a smothering defense, and KenPom agrees, rating them 11th in the land. One of the team's few blemishes of late is a loss to Kansas State just five days ago on the road.

In the A-10, it's the conference's No. 2 seed Loyola Chicago squaring off against No. 7 St. Bonaventure. The Ramblers are 10-1 in their last 11, the one loss coming to the Bonnies on the road at the end of February.

Both Iowa State and Loyola Chicago have beaten these opponents before, and with revenge fresh on the mind, we prefer backing the superior teams to advance in their respective conference tourneys.

Betting: Iowa State & Loyola Chicago moneylines (+128 FanDuel)

A win is a win, now do it again

Villanova had probably the ugliest performance from yesterday's slate when you consider it took a last-second shot to take down 3-29 DePaul. So why in the world would we consider backing the Wildcats today?

We can't help but think a scare like that and the subsequent rising to the occasion to survive will jolt Villanova, who is very much on the bubble. The real reason though, is that Marquette is resting its star guard Tyler Kolek in advance of a NCAA tournament run. With Kolek out, we'll hold our breath and back Villanova to keep this one close.

Betting: Villanova +4 (-110 Fanatics)

In the news ...

Calvin Ridley signs massive deal with Titans — It seemed likely that Calvin Ridley was either staying in Jacksonville or going to New England, but instead it's the Tennessee Titans coming out of nowhere to sign the receiver to a four-year contract with $50 million guaranteed. The main allure seems to be Tennessee's OC Nick Holz, who was Jacksonville's passing game coordinator last year. Will Levis is set to be the Titans' leading QB this year, and now he has a top receiving option. Tennessee has the longest odds of anyone to win the AFC South, at +1100. 

San Diego Padres trade for Dylan Cease — The San Diego Padres have made a move to shore up their rotation, acquiring 2022 AL Cy Young winner Dylan Cease from the Chicago White Sox. Cease now joins Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove to form a strong top three in San Diego, and while the Padres did ship out Juan Soto, they still have pieces to be competitive this coming season. The Padres are currently 20-1 to win the NL pennant this year, with Los Angeles (+175) and Atlanta (+250) the strong favorites to represent the National League in the World Series.

Montana State, McNeese State punch their tickets to the big dance — We have two more teams qualifying for March Madness' biggest stage, as McNeese State won the Southland Conference and Montana State took home the Big Sky title in style. The Bobcats went on an absurd 33-6 run in the second half to climb out of an 11-point hole, winning the game handedly. There are no conference championships today, but quarterfinals galore all day long. 

Today's Bark Bets is written by Griffin Carroll. Follow him on Substack: griffybets.substack.com.