2026 NCAA Tournament: Best Bets for Every Friday Night March Madness Game
David Connelly
Host · Writer
We’ve got a loaded Friday evening slate in the NCAA Tournament, featuring a full lineup of March Madness matchups to keep the action rolling! Check it out as we prepare you for an exciting day of college basketball with expert betting insights, matchup analysis, & top picks.
#9 Iowa vs. #8 Clemson
We get yet another exciting 8/9 matchup to tip things off on Day 2 of the NCAA Tournament. Despite a lack of signature wins this season, Iowa has been a bit of a predictive metric darling, which is where we are leaning in this one. They have gotten a bit unlucky with some end-of-game sequences this season, and they undeniably have the best player on the court in this game with Bennett Stirtz. Back the Hawkeyes to get it done.
The Pick: Iowa -2.5 (-105)
#15 Northern Iowa vs. #5 St. John’s
While Northern Iowa prefers to play at one of the slower paces in the country, they are not stuck in their ways when they go up against a more uptempo squad like St. John’s. In their five regular-season games against teams that play as fast or faster than the Johnnies, they cleared this total in all five. Take a swing at the over and don’t be surprised if the Panthers secede to a faster-paced matchup like the Red Storm will want.
The Pick: Over 131.5 (-115)
#10 UCF vs. #7 UCLA
UCLA feels like a serious sleeper in this region. The selection committee gave them a bit of a gift here, pitting them against the worst team to get placed into the field of 64, per KenPom. There is a hefty coaching gap between Mick Cronin and Johnny Dawkins, and the Knights limped into this field by dropping four of their previous five games. The only win came after a stunning collapse by Cincinnati in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament, which likely saw one of the final at-large bids for the NCAA Tournament switch hands. With Donovan Dent and Tyler Bilodeau likely healthy for this one, lay it with the Bruins.
The Pick: UCLA -5.5 (-110)
#15 Queens vs. #2 Purdue
Purdue is finally cruising, and they are starting to look like the preseason No. 1 squad we were all expecting to see this year. The big three of Braden Smith, Trey Kaufman-Renn, and Fletcher Loyer are playing at their peaks, and that’s a scary sight for the entire West region. Queens showed some serious resiliency by running through the Atlantic Sun Tournament to get to this point, but their defense is far too susceptible to holding the Boilermakers in check here. The Royals could catch fire from the field – they eclipsed 90 in their final two ASUN Tournament games – so we will back the Purdue team total here instead.
The Pick: Purdue TT o94.5 (-110)
#16 Prairie View A&M vs. #1 Florida
For anyone who has followed our best bets column over the past few weeks, they know that I am all-in on this Prairie View A&M team. These guys have really put it together over the past month or so, and it’s thanks to the stellar play from Dontae Horne and Cory Wells. The duo combined for 44 points and 18 rebounds in the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament win over Lehigh in the First Four on Wednesday. While things can get a little sloppy from a schematic standpoint for the Panthers, they have enough studs that can get enough buckets to keep them within this number.
The Pick: Prairie View A&M +35.5 (-112)
#13 Cal Baptist vs. #4 Kansas
Let’s root for some late-night chaos out in San Diego, shall we? The Lancers are led by Dominique Daniels Jr., the fifth-leading scorer in all of Division I. In the WAC Championship game last Saturday, he proved why he is one of the top scorers in the country. After starting the game 4-22 from the floor, he knocked down three consecutive triples to will Cal Baptist past Utah Valley and earn the league’s automatic bid. They now face the Jayhawks, where he could be the second-best player on the floor, only behind stud freshman Darryn Peterson. Kansas has been far too inconsistent for our liking this year, so we will take the points with Cal Baptist and their superstar. If you want a longshot moneyline sprinkle in this window, here is your chance.
The Pick: Cal Baptist +14.5 (-118)
#15 Furman vs. #2 UConn
The Paladins are a great example of getting healthy at the right time. After going a month without two starters in Asa Thomas and Cooper Bowser, both returned to the floor in early February, and the entire Southern Conference knew that they had become a threat again. Bowser dominated the SoCon Championship game, going for 21 points and 11 rebounds to push them past top-seeded East Tennessee State. The fifth-tallest team in the country, they have the horses to hang around with the Huskies in the paint. This squad is capable of keeping things close against the tournament’s weakest No. 2 seed for much of this matchup.
The Pick: Furman +20.5 (-115)
#10 Missouri vs. #7 Miami
The committee gave Missouri a complete gift here, placing them in the St. Louis pod as a ten-seed. The number has slightly reflected home-court advantage, sitting at a 1.5-point spread despite KenPom’s three-point projection. We are still going to back the de facto home team here, as the Tigers should get willed on enough by the crowd to get it done against a Miami team that largely struggled against stronger competition this year.
The Pick: Missouri ML (+110)
Stay ahead of the game and elevate your sports betting experience with SportsGrid.
