Wichita State Shockers vs. Arizona Wildcats Betting Odds, March Madness Pick

With a win in a First Four play-in game Tuesday night, Wichita State is now 8-3 both straight up and against the spread over its last 11 NCAA tournament games. Arizona, meanwhile, is 6-2 SU in the Big Dance over the last two seasons, but just 2-6 ATS, playing against some stiff spreads.

The mid-major Shockers meet the Pac-12's Wildcats in an NCAA tournament No. 6 vs. 11 seed bash Thursday night in Providence.

Point spread: The Shockers opened as one-point favorites; the total was 136.5, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. (Line updates and matchup report)

March Madness pick, via Odds Shark computer: 77.6-61.0 Shockers

Why pick Wichita State to cover the spread

The Shockers already own one win/cover in this tournament after pulling away for a 70-50 victory over Vanderbilt in a First Four game Tuesday night. Wichita State snapped a 30-30 halftime tie by scoring the first 11 points of the second half, allowed the Commodores to pull within one point with nine minutes to go, then ended the game on a 23-4 run, easily covering as a four-point favorite.

On the night, the Shockers only shot 37 percent from the field, but they outrebounded a larger Vandy team 43-38, only turned the ball over six times and got 35 points from their bench. Wichita State is now 17-3 SU and 15-5 ATS since senior guard Fred VanVleet returned from an early-season injury.

The Shockers lead the nation in scoring defense, holding foes to just 59 points per game, after limiting the Commodores to just 20 second-half points Tuesday night.

Why pick Arizona to cover the spread

Arizona started 13-1 this season, and while they came up a few wins short of three-peating as champions of the Pac-12 and fell in the semifinals of the conference tournament, the Wildcats are still probably underseeded in this NCAA tournament as a No. 6 seed. After all, this is a team that's reached the Elite Eight each of the last two seasons.

Arizona is led by the senior inside-outside combo of Ryan Anderson and Gabe York, who are combining to average 31 points per game, while fellow senior Kaleb Tarczewski, a 7-footer, is averaging nine points and nine boards.

On the season, the Wildcats are shooting 48 percent from the floor and 38 percent from three-point range while holding opponents to just 41 percent field-goal shooting.

Smart betting pick

This should be a dandy, but ultimately the Wildcats shoot the ball better than the Shockers, and they should own an edge on the glass. They're also playing on a full week's rest. Take Arizona on the college basketball betting lines here.

March Madness betting trends

Arizona is 1-5 ATS in its last six games against teams with winning records.

Arizona is 16-3 SU in its last 19 games after a loss.

Wichita State is 17-5-1 ATS in its last 23 games.

Wichita State is 10-3 SU in its last 13 games against teams with winning records.

All point spread and lines data courtesy of Odds Shark, and all quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line movement updates and get the free odds tracker app for iOS or Android.