March Madness Bracket 2016: Latest Picks and Odds Advice Before First Four Day 1

The First Four of the NCAA tournament gets underway with a doubleheader Tuesday night. Those games will whet the appetite of millions of hungry viewers waiting for their Thursday-Friday smorgasbord of wall-to-wall college basketball.

It starts with Florida Gulf Coast battling with Fairleigh Dickinson, while Vanderbilt will take on Wichita State in the late game.

Both the Commodores and Shockers probably feel like they got the short end of the stick that has forced them into this game, but neither one can spend any energy on complaints about the way the committee set up the tournament. Instead, they have to prepare for each other when they meet in Dayton, Ohio.

Wichita State (24-8) has been battle-tested in the past, and they are led by Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet, who are averaging 14.2 and 12.0 points per game, respectively. Vanderbilt (19-13) lost its last regular-season game to Texas A&M as well as its first-round game in the SEC tournament to Tennessee.

Wichita State has more momentum and has had the better season. The Shockers are three-point favorites, according to Odds Shark, and we like them to win and get the cover.

Michigan (22-12) and Tulsa (20-11) meet on Wednesday in the finale of the First Four games, and those two should be ready to put on a show when they meet in the Dayton Arena. The Wolverines were clearly on the bubble going into the Big Ten tournament, but the win over Indiana in the quarterfinal round most likely punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament.

While Caris LeVert is out with a leg injury and will not play in the tournament, head coach John Beilein is getting excellent team play. Zak Irvin and Derrick Walton Jr. are both averaging 11.7 points per game, and they are capable of pushing the Wolverines through the first weekend of the tournament.

Look for Michigan to win and cover as four-point favorites over the Golden Hurricane.

Once the tournament gets up to speed on Thursday, there are several excellent betting opportunities in the first round.

The key for any handicapper is not to get caught up in the moment and come to the conclusion that every game is an outstanding opportunity.

The good games and top winning opportunities are there, but they are not obvious.

Among the top seeds, we are going to swallow hard and take Virginia (26-7) and lay the 23.5 points against Hampton (21-10) Thursday at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. This is a fairly dangerous play for two reasons.

It's tough to lay more than 15 points at any time, and to do so with a team like Virginia, which specializes in stellar defensive play, is questionable.

But the Cavaliers are not one-dimensional, and they grind opponents down like few other teams. Head coach Tony Bennett's team creates offense from its defense with relative ease, and that should be able to wear down a Hampton team that is in way over its head.

Alex Brandon/Associated Press

Malcolm Brogdon is averaging 18.7 points per game, and he will dominate against the Pirates.

There are opportunities to go with the underdog in the first round, and we see one of those chances when fifth-seeded Indiana (25-7) meets 12th-seeded Chattanooga (29-5) of the Southern Conference on Thursday.

Indiana had an outstanding season, winning the Big Ten regular-season title, but it lost its opening Big Ten tournament game. The Hoosiers and head coach Tom Crean will not admit it, but they are looking forward to their potential second-round game against the Kentucky Wildcats.

That will keep the Hoosiers from paying full attention to the Mocs. Look for Chattanooga to keep this game close and easily stay within the 12-point spread. 

In the end, star guard Yogi Ferrell will get the job done down the stretch, and the Hoosiers will survive but won't cover.

Odds for the tournament

It's not just about the individual games coming up in the First Four and the first two rounds.

It's really about who comes away with the championship.

There are potentially explosive payoffs on the horizon for handicappers if they pick any team outside of Kansas, North Carolina and Michigan State and that team wins the tournament.

Kansas is the favorite to win the tournament at 13-2, while North Carolina is 7-1 and Michigan State is 15-2.

North Carolina and Kansas are No. 1 seeds, while Michigan State is a No. 2 seed. Virginia and Oregon are the other No. 1 seeds, and they are 11-1 and 18-1, respectively.

Oklahoma, Villanova and Xavier are the other No. 2 seeds besides the Spartans. The Sooners are 14-1, the Wildcats are 15-1 and the Musketeers are 16-1.

Here's the list of odds for the full field of 68 teams, according to Odds Shark. 

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