Often in this space we preview the best futures bets for the upcoming season. For the NFL, College Football, MLB, NHL and even the NBA you can pinpoint some great long term future opportunities with pretty good value, but with college basketball what makes it great, is what also makes it frustrating.
The NCAA Tournament is the best post season sports format and it's not really debatable for most sports fans, but the tournament, which pit nearly 70 teams against each other, also is the reason why futures bets in college hoops is so difficult. The gauntlet that is the tournament itself is a grueling, relentless grind that has knocked off even the best of teams. But, the value aspect doesn't bake this into the preseason odds. So, the college basketball betting futures market can get very messy.
As a sports bettor we have to learn to adjust. Smart sports investors will switch to take smaller conference champions instead of the overall aspect of betting who will win the whole thing. This is where some value can still be found. Here are some small school plays that can make you long term money this season.
The Dayton Flyers To Win The A-10 Conference. This comes with a nice 3 to 1 odds back, which will triple your money when it hits. The Flyers are a very dangerous team this season and they look like a top 25 squad. Cheeks will return in the back court and he is the backbone of this team. They then added two potential stars who dealt with injuries early in their careers and the fact is their talent far exceeds this conference. This team also gets to the line and plays disciplined ball, which becomes crucial in close games.
Let's stick with history here even if we have to lay a little more than 2 to 1 odds. Take the Vermont Catamounts To Win The America East Conference. Taking Vermont almost every season in this same spot to win their conference seems to pay off year after year. The conference has gotten better and that's why these aren't bigger odds, but the fact is coach John Becker is back, and his suffocating defense will be there once again. They have won this title 11 times in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2012, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, and 2024. There is no reason to think they can't take home the title again.
Another high line to the public stands out as value to the smart bettor. Taking High Point To Win The Big South Conference at 2 to 1 odds is a good investment. Not only will they win the conference but here is another bold prediction, High Point won't even lose two games this year. This team is not only stacked but their schedule is built that the look ahead has them favored in every game. We will see a one loss team, maybe, and an easy conference win. Despite the large odds this is a ling term investment that will cash.
Since no season preview is complete without giving out at least one team to win the championship let's go with a real long shot with the notion that hedging will give us a big advantage. Grand Canyon To Win The NCAA Championship at 25 to 1 odds is a dream scenario. This is not to say that Grand Canyon will win it all, but this is a great spot to hedge. They are -1000 to win their conference so that gives us a very likely chance to have a hedge chance. Meaning that once they get to the tournament you can then bet against them and still profit. Once they are in it's time to start hedging, this team is going to get out of the first weekend and if they get to the Sweet 16 this could be a massive money maker.