Winners Club: Men’s NCAAB Futures and the Latest Bracket Watch

Plus, MLB Opening Day is delayed.

Tuesday was the first day of March, and five top-25 college basketball teams lost – three of those losses in upset fashion. Coincidence? Or just March?

The madness on Tuesday was the continuation of a weekend that saw many of the top teams in the country, and some of the betting favorites to cut down the nets in a few weeks, suffer losses. Some conference tournaments are already taking place around the sport as Selection Sunday fast approaches. Meanwhile, the Power 6 conferences are still sorting things out before their brackets begin next week.

Speaking of brackets…

Welcome to March

Gonzaga’s Title Odds Fall, Still Remains the Favorite

Rick Bowmer/AP

The Bulldogs came up short in the NCAA title game a season ago and they’re back in position for a championship run as the top team in the nation. After falling to St. Mary’s as a 10.5-point favorite over the weekend, Gonzaga’s odds have fallen to +400, its lowest of the season. Duke’s stock is shooting up at the perfect time as is defending champion Baylor’s. Auburn, meanwhile, is plummeting. Frankie Taddeo walks us through the AP Top 10 teams—where they started, where they are now and whether they’re worth betting on.

Bracket Watch: The SEC is on the rise and much of the ACC lays in wait on the bubble. For now, the top four projected seeds are Gonzaga, Kansas, Arizona and Baylor—the Bears took Auburn’s place atop the Midwest. Keep up with Kevin Sweeney’s latest bracket projections ahead of Selection Sunday.

Wednesday Night CBB Picks: LSU is taking on No. 14 Arkansas and Oklahoma State clashes with Iowa State. To get the lines and picks for each game, Taddeo has you covered. The Razorbacks are one of the hottest teams in the country and they’re 5-point favorites at home against the Tigers.

Duke Ends Regular Season ACC Title Drought: The No. 4 Blue Devils will finish no worse than tied for first in the ACC in Coach K’s final season following Tuesday’s 86-56 win over Pitt, which easily covered the 14.5-point spread. The last time Duke won the regular season title, it won its conference tournament and the NCAA championship in 2010.

Badgers Beat Boilermakers, Win Share of Big Ten: Wisconsin upset Purdue at home on a last-second three-pointer, banked in by Chucky Hepburn. With the 70–67 win, the Badgers, who covered as 3-point underdogs, secured at least a share of their conference title with the opportunity to win it outright this weekend.

MLB Season Delayed

Games Canceled, No Deal Emerges From Negotiations

Ross D. Franklin/AP

Baseball’s Opening Day, originally scheduled for March 31, will be pushed back after the owners and players did not come to an agreement after long hours of negotiations. The players unanimously rejected the owners’ “best and final proposal,” which reportedly featured no changes to the current competitive balance tax thresholds and marginal raises to the league’s minimum salary. It’s not clear when the sides will meet again.

Fantasy Baseball Preparation: Whenever the season does start, Shawn Childs and Jen Piacenti are here to help strengthen your fantasy team. Childs has concluded a detailed series of individual team outlooks and has been explaining stats that can lead to team success. Piacenti singled out some late-round players to target with the introduction of the universal designated hitter.

Fantasy Football

How the Top Free Agent QBs May Affect Fantasy

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

The focus this offseason around the quarterback position will rightfully be the movement—or lack of movement—of Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Jimmy Garoppolo. But big swings at the most important position in team sports don’t always work out, or even happen. So Michael Fabiano is focusing on the free-agent signal callers – the Jameis Winstons, Mitchell Trubiskys and Marcus Mariotas of the world, and how they can help an NFL team and maybe help your fantasy team.

Is Carson Wentz Long for Indy?: The Colts could move on from Wentz this offseason after the team came up just short of making the playoffs. How could that potential departure affect Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr. and just how likely is it? Piacenti has the answers.

2022 Draft Rookie QB Primer: This year’s draft is certainly not like 2021, when quarterbacks with starting potential flew off the board in the first round. Matt De Lima takes a look at the top prospects at the position and what kind of fantasy value they could bring in their first year.

First-Year Running Backs Could Add Value: RB offers more upside right away in this draft class than quarterback for fantasy purposes. Kenneth Walker III leads the way at the position as De Lima helps search for the next Elijah Mitchell.

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Programming note: There won’t be new editions of Winners Club coming out Friday or Monday, but I’ll be back in your inbox a week from today. Enjoy the rest of your week!