NCAA Basketball Bets: American East Conference Tournament

American East Conference Tournament: LOUISVILLE, KY – NOVEMBER 16: Malik Williams #5 of the Louisville Cardinals fights for the ball against Ryan Davis #35 of the Vermont Catamounts in the first half of the game at KFC YUM! Center on November 16, 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville won 86-78. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

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Congratulations! You have officially survived the bleak, numb months of January and February and have entered the euphoric month of March where College Basketball takes ‘center court’, a gamblers paradise. With conference championships underway, we officially have wall-to-wall action every day as we barrel roll to the big dance, the NCAA March Madness tournament.

American East Conference Tournament

March 9-16, 2019

With exception to a handful of participation trophies to be given to Albany, Umass Lowell, Binghamton and Maine, this should be a very competitive race to the American East crown. The American East is one of the handful of conferences who will play out their tournament via ‘campus sites’ meaning the team with the higher seed will host their opponent.

Top seeded Vermont (-230), led by Junior Anthony Lamb (20.8 ppg, 8.0 rpg), are the heavy favorites and will look to clinch a spot in the big dance by warding off the likes of Hartford and likely Stony Brook or UMBC in the finals. Follow along at @AlexMcKinnonDFS for other conference breakdowns and daily picks.

American East Conference Tournament: CHARLOTTE, NC – MARCH 16: Jourdan Grant #5 of the UMBC Retrievers looks on during their game against the Virginia Cavaliers during the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 16, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

American East Conference Tournament Odds

Vermont (-230)

Stony Brook (+335)

Hartford (+850)

UMBC (+1150)

Albany (+4000)

Umass Lowell (+8500)

Binghamton (+30000)

Maine (+50000)

Best Value: UMBC +1150

The defending American East champions handed Vermont both of it’s lone 2 losses in the conference this season. The first in Vermont with a 74-61 victory over the Catamounts on January 23rd, the second being on February 21st with a 65-56 win on ESPNU.

UMBC had a poor end to the season, losing 2 out of 3 including loses to Stony Brook and Albany but clearly have the knack for the big game.

For reference, see last year’s conference championship and becoming the first 16-seed to ever defeat a #1 seed in the NCAA Men’s Tournament. They certainly lose a lot of flair without Jairus Lyles and KJ Maura but still have top scorers Joe Sherburne and Arkel Lamar from that magical run one year ago.

Although it is clear that Vermont is the SMART play for this years tournament, the value of UMBC being +1150 is an easy throw away bet if you’re looking for a long shot.

Dark Horse: Stony Brook +335

Although +335 is not a typical ‘Dark Horse’ pick, Stony Brook may go under the radar during this tournament with the likes of favorite Vermont and the well-known UMBC team. The Seawolves won 24 games this season including a 12-4 record against conference competition.

Included in those 12 wins are two against the 4-seed Hartford and a split series against UMBC. They will rely heavily on Junior Akwasi Yeboah who has struggled against the top teams in the American East. If they can get past UMBC, anything can happen in the conference championship.

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Follow along during the American East Conference Tournament and other NCAA conference tournaments as we head towards March Madness for daily picks at @AlexMcKinnonDFS!