Drake (10) vs. Washington State (7) Bracket Prediction: March Madness Odds
The Bulldogs are slim 1.5-point favourites to win on the college basketball odds, while the total for this East Region game is set at 137.5.
Drake vs. Washington State NCAA Tournament Point Spread and Betting
The winner of this game will take on either No. 2 Iowa State or No. 15 South Dakota State in the second round.
This is Drake’s seventh NCAA Tournament appearance, but they’ve been bounced in the first round in their last four tournaments. The Bulldogs are 6-6 all-time in the tournament, but they haven’t reached the second round since 1971. They’ve played in three of the last four NCAA Tournaments, including a first round loss against Miami (FL) last year. Drake is +25,000 to win the tournament, +5000 to reach the Final Four, +1400 to reach the Elite Eight and +575 to reach the Sweet 16.
Washington State is back in the Big Dance for the first time since 2008 and it’s just the sixth tournament appearance in school history. The Cougars, who have a 6-6 all-time record, had their best tournament result as runners-up in 1941 and they made it as far as the Sweet 16 in their last tournament appearance in 2008. Washington State is +15,000 to win the tournament, +3000 to reach the Final Four, +1000 to reach the Elite Eight and +425 to reach the Sweet 16.
If you’re looking ahead to the next round, it’s worth noting that while No. 7 seeds have a winning record against No. 10 seeds, they actually lose to 10-seeds at a higher rate than they beat No. 2 or 15-seeds in the second round. Penn State over Texas A&M was the lone 10-seed upset last year.
Drake Bulldogs (10)
Drake finished second in the Missouri Valley with a 16-4 conference record and a 28-6 overall record. They earned their NCAA Tournament berth on March 10 by beating Indiana State 84-80 for their third Missouri Valley Tournament title. The father-son duo of head coach Darian DeVries and Tucker DeVries has been key to the Bulldogs’ success. Tucker averages the sixth-most points per game in the nation (21.8) and Drake is a top-40 scoring team (80.5 ppg). The younger DeVries is one of four double digits scorers for the Bulldogs, including Atin Wright (13.9 ppg), Kevin Overton (11.4 ppg) and Darnell Brodie (11.3 ppg). One concern for Drake is a size disadvantage that led to the team ranking in the bottom-5 in the nation in average blocks per game (1.6).
Washington State Cougars (7)
Washington State posted a 24-9 overall record this year, finishing second in a strong Pac-12 conference with a 14-6 record. Despite falling to Colorado in the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament, the Cougars impressed the selection committee enough to earn an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament. The team shoots an efficient 46.6 per cent from the field and they rank top-30 in average blocks per game (4.8). Isaac Jones (15.4 ppg), Myles Rice (15.1 ppg), Jaylen Wells (12.2 ppg) and Andrej Jakimovski (10.0 ppg) lead the team offensively. Defensively, Washington State holds opponents to 66.9 ppg (top-50 in the nation).
DRKE
WSU