March Madness 2019: Bracket Predictions, Odds Tips for Final First 4 Schedule

After two First Four matchups took place on Tuesday, another pair will be played on Wednesday, wrapping up the brief opening slate for the NCAA tournament before the first round starts Thursday.

No. 11 seed Belmont and No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson were the winners of Tuesday's games, advancing into the first round. On Wednesday, No. 16 seeds North Carolina Central and North Dakota State will face off, followed by a matchup between No. 11 seeds St. John's and Arizona State.

The tournament field will be reduced to 64 teams following Wednesday's pair of games.

Bracket

First Four Schedule

Wednesday, March 20 (Dayton, Ohio)

No. 16 North Carolina Central vs. No. 16 North Dakota State, 6:40 p.m., truTV

No. 11 St. John's vs. No. 11 Arizona State, 9:10 p.m., truTV

Odds Advice (Odds Via OddsShark)

No. 16 North Carolina Central vs. No. 16 North Dakota State (-5)

Jason Hirschfeld/Associated Press

For North Carolina Central, this is nothing new. This marks the third straight year that the Eagles will play in the First Four round of the NCAA tournament.

This year, North Carolina Central was the No. 4 seed in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament, which it went on to win by defeating top-seeded Norfolk State in the championship game this past Sunday.

North Dakota State is making its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2014 and 2015.

This has the potential to be an even matchup. Both teams are 18-15 and were the No. 4 seeds in its respective conference tournaments. However, North Dakota State had a tougher regular-season schedule, hence the Bison are the five-point favorites here.

But North Carolina Central won't be overwhelmed by the environment at Dayton due to its past experience. So, take the points here in what could end up as a close game in a matchup that decides which team advances to play No. 1 overall seed Duke in the first round.

Pick: North Carolina Central (+5)

No. 11 St. John's vs. No. 11 Arizona State (-2)

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Wednesday's second matchup also features a team that was in last year's First Four round in Arizona State. But the Sun Devils aren't the same squad that went to Dayton in 2018.

"The whole look of our team is completely different from last year ... and to get the chemistry and develop that, it's very gratifying to see how far we have taken the season," Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley said, according to ESPN.com.

The Sun Devils finished second in the Pac-12 during the regular season, posting a 12-6 conference record. However, they lost to Oregon in the Pac-12 tournament semifinals.

Arizona State had some quality wins during the regular season—most notably over Kansas and Mississippi State—but so did St. John's, which beat Marquette twice and split its series against Villanova.

However, the Sun Devils played like a team that wasn't going to have to play in the First Four early in the season, so expect them to return to that form to open the NCAA tournament. And with St. John's only getting two points here, Arizona State seems to be the better bet.

Pick: Arizona State (-2)