March Madness Odds: Top 10 Favorites – #6 Ohio State Buckeyes 

March Madness Odds: Top 10 Favorites – #6 Ohio State Buckeyes 
Sun 28th February 2021

With less than two weeks until Selection Sunday the regular season of college basketball is beginning to draw to a close. But have no fear, the best 68 NCAA men’s basketball teams are less than one month away from tipping off March Madness basketball in 2021. 

Take a look at our previews of PointsBet’s top 10 favorites to win the 2021 NCAA Championship. Coming in at #6 is the Ohio State Buckeyes out of the Big Ten Conference.

Ohio State Buckeyes:
Record: 18-7
Conference: Big Ten
NCAA Championship Odds: +1600

Season Summary

The Ohio State Buckeyes finished their 2019-20 college basketball season as the 19th ranked team in the country on the AP poll, having won 21 of their 31 games (21-10, 11-9 vs Big Ten) prior to the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down the college basketball season and NCAA tournament. 

In preparation for the 2020-21 season, Ohio State brought in a four star recruiting class (headlined by Meechie Johnson, Eugene Brown III and Zed Key) to join their already talented roster. This resulted in the Buckeyes being named the 23rd best team in the country on the preseason AP poll. 

As it stands today, Ohio State are fifth in the loaded Big Ten conference with a 12-7 record (18-7 overall) against Big Ten opponents and three games behind conference leader Michigan (13-1 vs Big Ten). 

After starting their season with a five game winning streak the Buckeyes dropped two of their next four games against unranked opponents. In fact of their seven losses, only three have come against teams that had a top 25 AP ranking at the time of the game, going down to No. 21 Minnesota, No. 3 Michigan and most recently No. 9 Iowa. 

The Buckeyes were upset as favorites in their other four losses, going down to Purdue (twice), Northwestern and Michigan State by a combined 14 points. 

Sophomore forward E.J Lidell has been the most outstanding Ohio State player this season, leading the team in points (16.0), rebounds (6.8) and blocks (1.2). Liddell is one of three Buckeyes averaging double digit points this season, as Ohio State are currently the 50th best scoring team in Division 1 basketball, with 78.0 points per game.

Prior to their loss against Iowa, Ohio State had an average losing margin of just 3.6 points this season, with only two of the Buckeyes losses being decided in two possession games (the remaining four were all by three points or less).

However, No. 9 Iowa just handed No. 4 Ohio State their first double digit loss for the season as the Buckeyes went down 57-73. This will undoubtedly result in Ohio State slipping in the Week 15 Division 1 rankings. 

Ohio State will get a chance to snap their three game losing streak in their final game of the regular season when they face No. 5 Illinois. The Buckeyes will need to draw on their 16 point loss to Iowa and reignite their competitiveness prior to both the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.

Betting Summary 

Following the postponement of the 2020 March Madness tournament, the Ohio State Buckeyes opened with odds of +2800 to win the 2021 NCAA championship after concluding the 2020 college basketball season with a 21-10 record.

After being ranked the 23rd best team in the country on the preseason AP poll (having finished the previous season 19th), the Buckeyes odds to win the 2021 NCAA championship drifted out to +3000.

Once play got underway for the 2020-21 college basketball season, the Buckeyes were looking like one of the strongest teams in the country, winning their first three games by double digits on their way to a five game winning streak.

However, Ohio State closed out 2020 with two losses against unranked opponents. This resulted in the Buckeyes national championship odds drifting out to a season high +4250 in December and settling at +4000 early in the new year. 

A seven game winning streak that included victories over No. 10 Wisconsin and No. 8 Iowa saw Ohio State’s title odds come in from +4000 to +1600. The streak also brought the Buckeyes AP ranking from No. 15 into No. 4. 

However, Ohio State have closed out February with a three game losing streak, going down to No. 3 Michigan, Michigan State and No. 9 Iowa.

In what can only be described as a poor end to the college basketball regular season, Ohio State will likely see their AP ranking slide when the Week 15 rankings are released. This will undoubtedly see their NCAA championship odds drift from +1600.

*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of PointsBet.  

Are you interested in finding out more on the latest season of college basketball? Then make sure you visit our college basketball hub page, we’ve got all the details you need!

Image by: Mark Kesling

Jesse is and always has been a lover of sports. No matter the league, no matter the game, Jesse is constantly keeping up to date with the latest odds, news, injuries and stats. He has a strong interest in the NBA and the NFL, and he will always strive to keep you up to date with the best news, odds, predictions and picks that the ever engaging sporting world has to offer.