The 2023 edition of March Madness is down to its second to last weekend — and as we look at the Elite 8 odds and lines, we're putting together a parlay for all four games this weekend, featuring Texas vs. Miami in the final game to decide this year's Final Four.
If you've missed it so far this week, we're taking our favorite bets from the Big Bets on Campus crew — Stuckey and the Three Man Weave squad of Matt Cox, Ky McKeon and Jim Root — for each game, placing those bets individually, then piling them all together for an Elite 8 parlay at BetMGM.
Today, I also have a 10% boost at BetMGM, but check your account to see what kind of boost you might have specifically. In the past couple days, we've also had 20% boosts to use.
So far, we've gone 3-for-4 on both days of the Sweet 16, which is a big reason why we're also placing these bets individually. Of course, parlays are not the most mathematically sound bets you can make. In fact, almost every parlay you'll ever bet is -EV.
And that's OK, as long as you know what you're getting yourself into, and as long as you're doing it for entertainment.
Just don't trick yourself into thinking it's a ticket to a big payday, and an occasional parlay is just fine. These parlays are simply to have a fun and provide added rooting interest across a variety of games.
So, let's get to the weekend's full Elite 8 parlay, shall we?
Elite 8 Parlay at BetMGM: +1086 Boosted to +1194
FAU +1.5
UConn -2.5
Creighton moneyline
Miami-Texas over
Florida Atlantic vs Kansas State: Florida Atlantic +1.5
This one was a clean sweep for the BBOC crew — although that was at FAU +2. For their rationale on FAU vs Kansas State, take a few minutes to watch the video above; we won't go too in-depth here, given the unanimous pick of Florida Atlantic.
As alluded to above, the line is now down to FAU +1.5 at BetMGM. We'll still ride with the Owls here, but if you're looking for a different option, Jim was also on the over in this Elite 8 matchup.
UConn vs Gonzaga: UConn -2.5
"One of these teams better win the title." Ky came through with a forceful take for UConn vs Gonzaga, pointing out all the reasons the Huskies very well might be the best team left in the March Madness field.
The crew thinks UConn has the horses (the dogs?) to limit Drew Timme as much as possible on the offensive end, while Gonzaga's interior defense could be exposed, with Timme perhaps even ending up in foul trouble.
UConn on the moneyline is also an option for this leg if you want to take out the variance of UConn covering for slightly shorter odds on our Elite 8 parlay.
Creighton vs San Diego State: Creighton moneyline
Matty and Jim were on opposite sides here, with the former backing the Bluejays and the latter riding with the Aztecs. Stuckey and Ky both leaned Creighton, which is why we'll go with the blue birds for leg No. 3 in this parlay.
The only catch: Creighton was -1.5 when the BBOC squad made their picks, and the Bluejays are up to -2.5 now at BetMGM. So, we'll go with the Creighton moneyline at -135 and eat that extra bit of vigorish.
Texas vs Miami: Over
With the shotmaking Miami has on full display right now, Dylan Disu hurt for Texas, and Sir'Jabari Rice a significant X-factor off the bench for the Longhorns, I'll buy into Matty's suggestion to ride with the offensive momentum in this part of the bracket and root for points in the final game of the Elite 8.
This was a tough one, though. Our predictive analytics expert Sean Koerner projects the total closer to 146 or 147, and the BBOC crew was split on Texas vs Miami, with Stuckey passing, Jim leaning Miami and Ky leaning Texas.
The bright side: Since only one game is played at a time in the Elite 8, if our parlay is still live on Sunday afternoon, we'll have a chance to hedge.
Until then, best of luck with your Elite 8 parlay and all your March Madness bets! For more, check out our NCAA Tournament Odds, Best Bets: Our Top Picks for Saturday’s Elite 8 Games, Including UConn vs. Gonzaga (March 25).
