Penn State has grown accustomed to playing the role of the underdog, and they will start their NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament run in the same role. The Nittany Lions take on Texas A&M in a first-round matchup on Thursday night in Des Moines, Iowa, and Penn State has officially opened in the underdog role according to the initial odds released from BetMGM.
According to BetMGM, Penn State is a 2.5-point underdog in the first-round matchup in the Midwest region matchup. Penn State has played its last four games as an underdog in the Big Ten basketball tournament but managed to win three of those games to get to the Big Ten championship game against Purdue before suffering a setback. Texas A&M is also coming off a run to its conference championship game, losing to Alabama in the SEC championship game on Sunday.
This will be Penn State’s first appearance in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament since 2011, and the Nittany Lions are searching for its first tournament win since advancing to the Sweet 16 in 2001. Jalen Pickett will hope to end the search for a tournament win against a good-quality opponent in the Aggies. The Aggies enter this year’s tournament ranked no. 17 in the final USA TODAY Sports coaches poll before the tournament begins. Penn State received enough votes to be the third team among others receiving votes following their fun ride in the Big Ten tourney.
Penn State is 20-13-2 this year against the spread, covering the spread 60.6% of the time regardless of being the favorite or the underdog. Penn State has covered the spread eight of its last 11 games, and has covered the spread in its last eight games as an underdog.
Texas A&M is one of the best teams in the nation against the spread. The Aggies are 23-11 against the spread this season, with a cover rate of 67.7% (good for fourth-best in the nation). The Aggies have won nine straight games as the favorite, covering each time.
Penn State and Texas A&M are scheduled to play their first-round matchup on Thursday, March 16 at approximately 9:55 p.m. ET.
[betwidget_betmgm]
Gannett may earn revenue from sports betting operators for audience referrals to betting services. Sports betting operators have no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See applicable operator site for its terms and conditions. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available. Call the National Council on Problem…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Basketball | Nittany Lions Wire…