2023 NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 Same Game Parlay Picks & Predictions (Thursday)
The Round of 16 is here, and it’s shaping up for a sweet weekend of college basketball. We’ll have you covered with our best bets throughout the Sweet 16 and Elite 8. Let’s take a look at our top same game parlays for Thursday’s Sweet 16 action.
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Sweet 16 Best Same Game Parlay Bets (2023 NCAA Tournament)
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Kansas State vs. Michigan State
Leg 1: Joey Hauser Over 14.5 Points (-120)
The Spartans faced Marquette and USC, two teams with strong backcourts, on their way to the Sweet 16. Tyson Walker led all scorers with 23 points in the team’s recent upset victory over the Golden Eagles as they prevailed 69-60. As the saying goes, always trust Coach Izzo at this point in the calendar. He’s also gotten the best out of Joey Hauser, who performed significantly on the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Expect another one here.
Leg 2: Markquis Nowell: Under 17.5 (-105)
In the opening round, the Wildcats easily defeated 14-seed Montana State. They then faced Kentucky, who had Oscar Tshiebwe, the National Player of the Year from the previous season. The game’s MVP was Markquis Nowell, who contributed 27 points and nine assists to the team’s 75-69 victory. He made several crucial shots in the second half that kept Kansas State in the game.
The Spartans’ defense will need to focus on Nowell, and if they can’t contain him, Kansas State has a solid chance to win this game. Coach Izzo is one of the greatest to ever do it at taking an opponent’s star player out of the contest through game planning.
Leg 3: Michigan State ML (-125)
The whole Big Ten has had a difficult NCAA Tournament thus far. All but one of their eight teams, including top-seeded Purdue, which fell to 16-seed Fairleigh Dickinson, are gone going into the Sweet 16. The only remaining team in the conference is Michigan State (21-12), led by Hall of Fame head coach Izzo, who is making a third straight Sweet 16 appearance.
Across the court is Jerome Tang, a former assistant at Baylor who won a National Championship but is new as a head coach. He has been the most outstanding first-year head coach in college basketball this year after guiding Kansas State (25-9) from the bottom of the Big 12 to one of the last 16 teams still in action.
While Coach Tange has a long career ahead of him, I think he is outmatched in this one, and in a round where coaching matters; Sparty pulls it out.
Parlay Odds: +400
Florida Atlantic vs. Tennessee
Leg 1 – Olivier Nkamhoua – Over 10.5 Points (-130)
The Volunteers’ attack thus far in the tournament has been led by Olivier Nkamhoua, who led all scorers with 27 points on 10-of-13 shooting in their win vs. Duke. While that was certainly an anomaly compared to the rest of his season, he should be able to eclipse half of that.
Leg 2 – Santiago Vescovi – Over 12.5 (-125)
While guard Santiago Vescovi recorded a game-high 12.7 points along with 4.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists, in their game vs. Duke he averages 11.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Normally I’d call for regression, but Vescovi matches up well here against FAU and I expect him to get his.
Leg 3 – Tennessee -5.5 (-110)
As ninth-seeded Florida Atlantic made history by reaching the Sweet 16 for the first time, as coach Dusty May has this program playing as well as it ever has. In his post-game presser in round two, he threw out a playful jab at the tough style of play played by fourth-seeded Tennessee, which came under fire during the second round of the NCAA Tournament due to the excessive fouling of one player.
In a battle of philosophies, Tennessee and its tough defense will take on 3-point-shooting FAU on Thursday in the East Region semifinals. With 57.8 points per game allowed, the Volunteers (25-10) have the third-best scoring defense in Division I, and their 65-52 victory over fifth-seeded Duke in the second round proved just that as they forced 15 turnovers.
During the season, the Vols reached as high as No. 2 in the nation, but in addition to dealing with the departure of point guard Zakai Zeigler to an ACL injury, they lost six of their final ten games to end the season. While FAU (33-3) has won tournament games in just its second trip to the Big Dance, Tennessee is making its sixth Sweet 16 appearance since 2007 and second under Barnes.
Before surviving a tough opening weekend in Columbus, Ohio, the Owls won the C-USA championship. With two seconds left, Nicholas Boyd’s layup defeated Memphis, 66-65, and they next faced Fairleigh Dickinson, the second No. 16 seed to ever defeat a No. 1 seed.
With 12 minutes left, FAU was down 49-44 before pulling ahead. In the 78-70 triumph, Johnell Davis finished with 29 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and five steals after making a vital steal and slam with seconds remaining.
Given its mid-major status and No. 9 seed, FAU is one of the few remaining Cinderellas which is a great storyline coming into this one. I do think that the fairytale ends here, however.
Parlay Odds: +400
Gonzaga vs. UCLA
Leg 1 – Adem Bona +10 Points (+255)
Unfortunately, the main topic around the Bruins has been how severely shorthanded they have been. DPOY Pac-12 standout big man Adem Bona missed Round 1 and wasn’t fully healthy when he participated in Round 2, Jaylen Clark is out with an Achilles injury sustained in the regular season’s final game, and David Singleton, a fifth-year wing, also suffered an ankle injury against Northwestern but is expected to play.
In a game they need him desperately, I like for Bona to show out in this one.
Leg 2 – Gonzaga (+105)
With a relatively difficult start to the year, the Gonzaga Bulldogs were written off as not being up to par this season. Early in the season, the Zags’ chances were dampened by defeats to Texas, Purdue, and Baylor in the non-conference portion of the schedule.
Given that all three teams received a Top 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, those losses weren’t all that bad in the end, but the margin of defeat (19 points against the Longhorns and 18 points against the Boilermakers) raised some red flags.
Although to a lesser extent, Mark Few’s team largely did what it usually does in WCC play: dominate. Normally, the Zags cruise through their league rivals with ease, but a puzzling loss to Loyola Marymount in the middle of January gave early warning flags some credence. Early in January, a defeat to Saint Mary’s raised questions about whether Gonzaga would maintain its hegemony.
After their first setback to Saint Mary’s, the Zags turned things around, winning seven straight games to end the regular season and two more in the conference tournament to capture both the regular season and tournament crowns for the WCC.
In this tournament, the Zags gained control of the game against Grand Canyon in Round 1 after a sluggish start, winning 82-70. Similar to this, Gonzaga trailed TCU 38-33 in the second round before exploding in the second half to defeat them 84-81.
The UCLA Bruins, who dominated the regular season with an 18-2 record, were by far the best team in the Pac-12 this year. Even though the Bruins were severely shorthanded for the game against Arizona, Mick Cronin’s team would lose to them in the Pac-12 championship.
The Bruins defeated UNC Asheville with enthusiasm in an 86-53 victory, putting forth the best performance of any team in Round 1. Then, in a game that had a competitive second half but eventually had a rather decisive last few minutes, they upset Northwestern 68-63.
Parlay Odds: +950
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