Kentucky vs. Oakland: 2024 NCAA Tournament Odds & Picks
Now that the 2024 NCAA Tournament brackets have been announced, it’s time to make your sports betting picks to increase the excitement of March Madness. Let’s take a look at the early odds and picks for the 2024 NCAA Tournament game: Kentucky vs. Oakland. And make sure to check out our 2024 NCAA Tournament Bracket Optimizer to take down your pools!
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2024 NCAA Tournament Odds & Picks: Kentucky vs. Oakland
Kentucky 2024 NCAA Tournament Preview
With an offense ranking in the top five in KenPom efficiency metrics, Kentucky has continued showcasing one of the nation’s best offenses. Leading all of DI ball with a three-point shooting percentage above 41 percent, anyone can take over for this team. Reed Sheppard has truly dazzled of late, leading the nation with a three-point percentage over 52%. Antonio Reeves knows how to score at all levels; Rob Dillingham comes off the bench and is still one of the team’s most efficient players. Of course, you have Big Z — Zvonimir Ivisic — who can catch fire from deep.
With their rapid pace and how they take care of the ball, Kentucky will be delightful to watch this tournament. Still, their game has a massive flaw, and that’s defense. Ranking outside the top 100, the Wildcats ceiling is limited. It’s been shown that teams can’t win championships without defense. However, that doesn’t mean they can’t make a run. Looking at Miami from last year is a perfect example of a team capable of making a Final Four run relying entirely on offense. The problem is if Kentucky has an off night of shooting or gets outshot like against Texas A&M in the SEC tournament, their tournament run will be cut short.
No team has ever won after losing their first game in the conference tournament. Kentucky’s defense has been worse in the last month or so, ranking outside the top 150 in defensive efficiency since February 1st. Still, they step up to competition, ranking first in offensive efficiency against top-100 teams. The question at hand is how far their offense can take them.
Oakland 2024 NCAA Tournament Preview
When push came to shove, Oakland stepped up and claimed the Horizon League title to earn an auto-bid into the NCAA tournament. Trey Townsend led the way in the tourney championship, playing all 40 minutes and tallying 38 points. Jack Gohlke comes off the bench but plays starter minutes, with 327/335 shots attempted this year coming from beyond the arc. Defensively, the Golden Grizzlies avoid freebies, keeping teams off the charity stripe and ranking in the top 30 in defensive second-chance scoring percentage. They allow a lot of threes, however, and a lot of open looks.
Offensively, they’ll attempt a fair share of perimeter looks but rank outside the top 300 in transition scoring and second-chance looks. Currently, there are health questions surrounding Isaiah Jones and Rocket Watts. While Trey Townsend is the star, both are impact players and missing either would limit the Golden Grizzlies’ chance at an upset. The metrics don’t favor Oakland either, with their Shot Quality record sitting at 18-16, five more losses than their actual record. They did have a top-15 non-conference strength of schedule, beating Xavier on the road. It wasn’t a great performance otherwise but that does bode well for tournament preparedness. Considering luck was on their side this season, the injuries impacting them, and their lack of an offensive backup plan if shots aren’t falling, a lot would have to go Oakland’s way to make a Cinderella run.
2024 NCAA Tournament Predictions: Kentucky vs. Oakland
It’s going to be very difficult trying to stop the Kentucky offense. The Wildcats have shot 41.2% from deep and 54.7% from inside the arc. Kentucky has even hit 77.3% from the foul line. The issue with Kentucky is its defense. Therefore, it’s likely that Oakland can at least put up enough points to help hit the Over. Oakland doesn’t always play at a fast pace, but they’ve been above average in most offensive categories. They’ve hit better than 35% from three and 51.7% from inside the arc. I’ll gladly take the Over in this one. That’s how most Kentucky games have played out this season.
2024 NCAA Tournament Picks: Kentucky vs. Oakland
Pick: Over 160.5 (-110 on DraftKings)
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2024 NCAA Tournament Sports Betting Picks
Now that the 2024 NCAA Tournament brackets have been announced, it’s time to make your sports betting picks to increase the excitement of March Madness. Let’s take a look at the early odds and picks for the 2024 NCAA Tournament
EAST REGION
- UCONN v Stetson (1v16)
- Iowa St. v South Dakota St. (2v15)
- Illinois v Morehead St. (3v14)
- Auburn v Yale (4v13)
- San Diego St. v UAB (5v12)
- BYU v Duquesne (6v11)
- Washington St. v Drake (7v10)
- Florida Atlantic v Northwestern (8v9)
MIDWEST REGION
- Montana St/Grambling St PLAY IN
- Virginia/Colorado St. PLAY IN
- Tennessee vs. Saint Peter’s (2v15)
- Creighton vs. Akron (3v14)
- Kansas vs. Samford (4v13)
- Gonzaga vs. McNeese (5v12)
- South Carolina vs. Oregon (6v11)
- Utah St. vs. TCU (8v9)
SOUTH REGION
- Boise St./Colorado PLAY IN
- Houston vs. Longwood (1v16)
- Marquette vs. Western Kentucky (2v15)
- Kentucky vs. Oakland (3v14)
- Duke vs. Vermont (4v13)
- Wisconsin vs. James Madison (5v12)
- Texas Tech vs. NC State (6v11)
- Nebraska vs. Texas A&M (8v9)
WEST REGION
- Howard/Wagner PLAY IN
- Arizona vs. Long Beach St. (2v15)
- Baylor vs. Colgate (3v14)
- Alabama vs. Charleston (4v13)
- Saint Mary’s vs. Grand Canyon (5v12)
- Clemson vs. New Mexico (6v11)
- Dayton vs. Nevada (7v10)
- Mississippi St. vs. Michigan St. (8v9)
2024 NCAA Tournament Bracket Pool Strategy & Picks
Below we provide strategy, advice, and picks to create the optimal NCAA Tournament bracket. And be sure to use our FREE bracket optimizer to build a winning men’s NCAA tournament bracket and take down your contest!