Conference Tournament Betting Odds 2023: Gonzaga, Saint Mary's have shortest odds in WCC, Charleston remains favorite in CAA, more

As the calendar flips to March, college basketball takes center stage. While the high-major programs still have one final week of conference play, conference tournament action is about to tip off at the mid-major level. For most of the programs competing this week, their season rests in their respective conference's single-elimination tournament, likely leading to timeless highlights and heartbreaking losses.

DraftKings Sportsbook just released odds on eight of this week's conference tournaments, so let's break down the numbers and dish out some insight into how those tournaments could potentially unfold.

Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook

Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament Odds 2023

The Atlantic Sun Conference tournament gets underway Monday with two first-round games between Queens-FGCU and North Florida-Bellarmine. Unfortunately, just 10 of the 14 schools in the Atlantic Sun participate in the conference tournament, as Austin Peay, Central Arkansas, Jacksonville State, and Jacksonville have already had their chances of becoming this season's Cinderella axed.

Despite entering the A-Sun tournament as the No. 2 overall seed, the Liberty Flames (-230) are priced as the odds-on favorite to claim their fourth tournament title in the past five seasons, thanks, in part, to leading the conference in KenPom's adjusted defensive efficiency metric (42nd in D-1). The Flames certainly have the highest ceiling, as they lead the country in offensive rebound percentage allowed (20.6 percent), but it might be too steep of a favorite to warrant wagering on. 

Kennesaw State (+300) has home-court advantage throughout the tournament and earned the top seed with an 88-81 victory over Liberty back on Feb. 16. The Owls sport the nation's 31st-best three-point scoring rate, connecting on 37.2 percent of their three-point attempts. Having a team who can get hot from three on any given day is lethal in a single-game elimination format, so don't be surprised to see Amir Abdur-Rahim’s squad cut down the nets at home.

Last season, the Bellarmine Knights (+20000) won the A-Sun conference in their first season as a Division 1 school, but per NCAA rules, they could not participate in the NCAA Tournament. Jacksonville State received the league's automatic bid, winning the regular season crown and losing to No. 2 Auburn, 80-61. Bellarmine and Queens NC (+10000) are ineligible to compete in the NCAA Tournament, so if either school were to make a run and win the A-Sun, Kennesaw State would be the conference's representative. 

The 2023 #ASUN Bracket. pic.twitter.com/O60Ms4ke7X

— Rocco Miller (@RoccoMiller8) February 25, 2023

Patriot League Conference Tournament Odds 2023

Another heavy favorite is expected to earn an automatic bid in the Patriot League, with Colgate (-220) sitting north of two-dollar favorites to win its third-straight title. Matt Langel's Raiders lead the country in effective field goal percentage (58 percent) and three-point scoring rate (40.7 percent), and they do so without turning the basketball over (15.4 percent turnover rate). The higher seed hosts each game, so Colgate has a chance to earn a bid on its home floor. 

Since the NCAA expanded the field to 68 teams, 10 of the 12 Patriot League conference tournaments have been won by the top two seeds, so recent history and the betting market give Colgate and Navy (+270) the best chances to extend their season into the NCAA Tournament. Colgate lost just one conference game, a 61-60 road loss to American (+8000), and has won 11-of-13 home games this season. Of course, it's always tough laying a hefty price on the odds-on favorite to win a single-game elimination tournament, but Colgate's sound offense should help it pull off the three-peat.

The 2023 Patriot League Tournament Bracket. #PLMBB pic.twitter.com/rgDZFkV4p8

— Rocco Miller (@RoccoMiller8) February 26, 2023

Sun Belt Conference Tournament Odds 2023

Relative to other conference tournaments, the Sun Belt is as wide open as it comes. The regular season produced a tight race throughout, and this week's conference tournament should yield numerous one-possession, coin-flip types of games. Marshall (+200) is pegged with the lowest odds to claim the Sun Belt's automatic bid as the No. 3 seed, but the gap between the Thundering Herd and the team with the second-best odds, the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns (+360), is minuscule. The Ragin' Cajuns knocked off the Thundering Herd 77-67 in their lone regular-season meeting and are likely to matchup in the semifinals should both schools take care of business in the quarters.

James Madison (+380) profiles as an intriguing sleeper, as the Dukes have won nine of their past 11 games, with their two losses coming against Marshall (92-83) and Georgia Southern (76-73). The Dukes would likely have to take down top-seeded Southern Miss (+450) in the semifinals, but given the Dukes have better odds to win the Sun Belt and closed as just a 1.5-point road favorite against the Golden Eagles likely means James Madison's going to be priced as the favorite in a potential rematch.

Further down the odds board, South Alabama (+850) could go on a run as the Sun Belt's No. 8 seed. The Jaguars face ninth-seeded Appalachian State in the second round and are projected as five-point favorites per KenPom. A quarterfinal matchup with the top-seeded Golden Eagles could lend itself to the first major upset of the tournament, as South Alabama held its own in its regular season meetings against Southern Miss. USA lost by four points on the road in Hattiesburg back in late-January but trounced Southern Miss 85-54 in their second meeting on Feb. 16.

The 2023 #SunBelt Tournament Bracket. pic.twitter.com/fQYpZKKoGi

— Rocco Miller (@RoccoMiller8) February 25, 2023

Horizon League Conference Tournament Odds 2023

For the first time since 2019-20, the Horizon League was won outright, with the Youngstown State Penguins (+170) winning its first-ever regular season title with a 15-5 finish. As a result, the Penguins have the inside track to represent the league in the NCAA Tournament, hosting the lowest-remaining seed throughout (with the league re-seeding after each round). Three teams, Cleveland State (+400), Northern Kentucky (+400), and Milwaukee (+1000), finished tied for second place, but Milwaukee earned the tournament's No. 2 seed after sporting a 4-0 head-to-head record against Cleveland State and Northern Kentucky. First-year head coach Bart Lundy has had an impressive season turning the Panthers into Horizon League contenders, but the betting market's not expecting them to have much success this week.

Wright State (+650) won the Horizon League tournament last season, but with go-to players Grant Basile (Virginia Tech) and Tanner Holden (Ohio State) transferring to high major schools, it will be tough for Scott Nagy's Raiders to win the league for a second straight season. 

The NCAA's No. 2 all-time scorer, Antoine Davis, sits 64 points behind Pete Maravich and has a chance to become the NCAA's leading scorer. Davis is hoping to lead the Detroit Mercy (+1800) on a deep Horizon League Tournament run, but with the Titans likely projected as multi-possession underdogs in their second game of the tournament should they take care of Purdue Fort Wayne on Tuesday, Davis might only have two games remaining in his collegiate career.

The 2023 Horizon League Tournament Bracket. #HLMBB pic.twitter.com/l1urquaNZh

— Rocco Miller (@RoccoMiller8) February 26, 2023

Big South Conference Tournament Odds 2023

In the Big South, the Longwood Lancers (+240) are the odds-on favorites to win its second straight Big South conference tournament as Griff Aldrich's Lancers return much of last season's championship squad (13th in minutes continuity). UNC Asheville (+260) won the regular season crown with a 16-2 conference record and heads to the Big South tournament as the No. 1 seed for a sixth time in school history. 

The Bulldogs enter the Big South tournament winners in 15 of their past 16 games, most recently taking down Longwood 76-66 to close out the regular season. Asheville's one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country, boasting the nation's fifth-highest three-point scoring rate (39.5 percent), which could help them it last season's semifinal loss to Longwood.

Winthrop (+1300) has won the Big South tournament in three of the past six seasons, but it struggled in its second season without head coach Pat Kelsey, who's now in charge of a 28-3 Charleston bunch. Winthrop still managed to make it to the Big South championship game in its first season without Kelsey, but it lost a good deal of production from that team, mainly forward DJ Burns, who's now with North Carolina State. The Big South tournament could be one where we see a long shot steal the show in Charlotte, but it's hard to bet against Longwood and UNC Asheville to keep up their impressive play.

The 2023 #BigSouthMBB Tournament Schedule. pic.twitter.com/2nC61fTxGk

— Rocco Miller (@RoccoMiller8) February 26, 2023

West Coast Conference Tournament Odds 2023

As the odds imply, the WCC is essentially a two-horse race between Gonzaga (-110) and Saint Mary's (-110). Gonzaga's 77-68 home win over Saint Mary's on Saturday night resulted in a two-way tie for the regular season title, but with Saint Mary's ranking higher in the NET, the Gaels were awarded the tournament's top seed. While Santa Clara (+5000) and LMU (+10000) were the only other schools to end WCC regular season play with an above .500 record, the betting market's not expecting either school to steal a bid.

Saint Mary's and Gonzaga receive a triple bye to Monday's semifinals, which is part of the reason why the Gaels and Bulldogs have identical odds to win the WCC tournament. Gonzaga and Saint Mary's are both locks for the NCAA Tournament, and without any other bubble teams, the WCC tournament isn't all that intriguing. Still, a rubber match between the Gaels and Bulldogs for the WCC tournament title would be an entertaining watch. Gonzaga's likely to be priced as a short favorite in that game, so betting them at -110 may yield some value.

The 2023 WCC Tournament Bracket. pic.twitter.com/kJYTpSp695

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) February 26, 2023

Colonial Athletic Association Conference Tournament Odds 2023

The Colonial Athletic Association's (CAA) regular season saw Charleston (-115) and Hofstra (+180) finish with identical 16-2 conference records, but Hofstra earned the tournament's top seed with a head-to-head win over Charleston back in late January. Hofstra enters the CAA tournament riding the nation's third-longest active win streak (11 games) and is searching for its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance in school history. 

The Pride won the 2020 CAA Tournament, but they never got the chance to hear their name called on Selection Sunday, something Speedy Claxton's bunch is yearning for. We'll see if the two end up meeting the championship, as fellow contenders Towson (+600) and UNCW (+1000) can make a run en route to an automatic bid. One of Hofstra's two conference losses came against Towson in mid-January, so there's a chance a nice plus-money underdog comes through for bettors.

CAA Tournament bracket is all set. First round tips off next Friday in Washington, D.C. pic.twitter.com/PGZjymyn2J

— Projection Sports (@ProjSports) February 26, 2023

Southern Conference Tournament Odds 2023

The Southern Conference tournament could go a variety of ways, but as things currently stand, Bob Richey's Furman Paladins (+120) have the best odds to reach the NCAA Tournament. Furman suffered a brutal, buzzer-beating loss to Chattanooga in last season's tournament championship and is looking to make amends this time around. 

The Paladins boast KenPom's 34th-most efficient offense (114.7 points per 100 possessions) and have two experienced go-to players in forward Jalen Slawson and guard Mike Bothwell. Furman notched the tournament's No. 1 seed for the first time since 1991 and is three wins away from its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance. Samford (+400) enters as the No. 2 seed despite posting the same conference record as the Paladins, but it suffered two of its three conference losses to Furman, losing the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Chattanooga (+1200) won last season's tournament, but after losing head coach Lamont Paris to South Carolina, the Mocs failed to reach .500 in conference play. The Southern Conference is Furman's to lose, as taking down one of the nation's best offenses that have experienced bucket-getters will be tough

The Southern Conference tournament bracket.

Who will win the SoCon? pic.twitter.com/j66JHKGG8n

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) February 26, 2023