2019 Free NCAA Tournament Picks – East Region Odds & Bracketology Predictions: Talk about not doing any of the top seeds any favors. The East Region of the 2019 NCAA Tournament Bracket is home to the No. 1 overall seed, the Duke Blue Devils. It is also home to a team many thought would grab a No. 1 seed, the Big Ten tournament champion Michigan State Spartans. Throw in the SEC champion LSU Tigers, and this region is loaded with heavy hitters up top.

2019 Free NCAA Tournament Picks: East Region Odds & Bracketology Projections

NCAA East Bracket Favorites to Make the Final Four

Duke: Zion Williamson returned from injury and the Blue Devils promptly went on to claim the ACC tournament title. With the best player in the country healthy, Duke is tough to stop. Williamson and RJ Barrett can both take over games by themselves, and having two players likely to be selected in the top 3 of the NBA Draft gives the Blue Devils a level of talent that no other team can match. At full strength, the Blue Devils are the favorite to win it all.

Michigan State: What a tough draw for the Spartans. They went from being in the mix for a No. 1 seed to ending up in the same bracket as the No. 1 overall seed. That being said, this is the most complete Michigan State team to come around in quite some time. Cassius Winston is a floor general and clutch scorer, and instead of relying heavily on defense like in past years, this year’s group can actually score the ball. Capping the year with three wins over Michigan in the last seven games and a Big Ten tournament title is proof this team is ready to go.

NCAA East Bracket Upset Specials

Minnesota over Louisville: This may be the strangest revenge game in NCAA Tournament history. Louisville parted ways with former coach Rick Pitino amid multiple scandals, and guess who happens to coach Minnesota, his son Richard Pitino. Pitino is sure to have his Golden Gophers fired up for this one, and when they are playing well, they have shown they can knock up some strong competition.

Liberty Over Mississippi State: The Bulldogs have more individual talent in this matchup, but Liberty’s style is built to keep games close and fuel upsets. The Flames have five players who can knock down an open 3-pointer, and their defense ranks in the top 10 nationally in points per game. Mississippi State prefers to push the pace, but Liberty is going to try to bleed clock and hit from deep. If the Flames are hitting their shots, the Bulldogs will have their hands full.

NCAA East Bracket High Seed on Alert

LSU: If I’m worried about one of the top seeds in this region, it has to be LSU. Not to demean their SEC regular season crown. After all, the beat Tennessee and Kentucky by a basket to get to the top. However, they only had to face each of those teams once, and the Tigers dropped a couple of matchups to Florida late in the year. They also aren’t a great 3-point shooting team, which could spell trouble in March if an opponent gets hot from deep.

NCAA East Bracket PREDICTION: Duke Blue Devils

2019 NCAA Bracket East Region Odds



East Regional Winner

Duke (#1) -175

Michigan State (#2) +375

LSU (#3) +1000

Virginia Tech (#4) +1400

Louisville (#7) +1600

Mississippi State (#5) +2000

Maryland (#6) +2500

Belmont (#11) +4000

Central Florida (#9) +5000

Minnesota (#10) +5000

Virginia Commonwealth (#8) +5000

Yale (#14) +7000

Saint Louis (#13) +8000

Temple (#11) +8000

Liberty (#12) +10000

Bradley (#15) +15000

North Dakota State (#16) +15000

NC Central (#16) +20000

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