Syracuse Orange: March Madness 2010 NCAA Tournament Odds

The Syracuse Orange emerged from being something of an afterthought that was considered to be a middle of the pack Big East team to a conference champion and now a +600 betting favorite in March madness 2010 NCAA tournament odds. Syracuse did falter at the end of the season though which has scared off some of the gambling public's money as they lost their regular season finale at Louisville and then lost their only game in the Big East tournament to the eventual runner up Georgetown. Syracuse still had an impressive college basketball betting season and are considered to be one of the favorites to make the Final Four.

Syracuse enters March madness odds with a record of 28-4 straight up on the season and 18-9 against the spread as favorites. The Orange did their best work on the road going 10-2 against the spread while going 14-9 as favorites and 3-0 against the spread as an underdog on the road. In winning the Big East regular season championship, the Orange had to beat out such teams as West Virginia, (Big East champions), Villanova, Pittsburgh, Marquette, Louisville, Georgetown and Notre Dame, all of whom are considered betting favorites to win the 2010 NCAA tournament.

Syracuse is one of the strongest offensive teams in the land as they ranked 6th in the nation for scoring at 81.5 points per game. Forward Wesley Johnson is the man that makes the Orange go as he led the team in scoring with 16.0 points per game while also leading the team in rebounds with 8.4 per game. Syracuse has had recent wins against Villanova, Georgetown, Marquette, Notre Dame and West Virginia along with impressive non conference wins over Florida and Cal earlier this year. Jim Boeheim has done arguably the best coaching job of his career in leading Syracuse to the big dance and has a team primed for a Final Four run.

Syracuse will face the Vermont Catamounts in their first round match-up on Friday, March 19th at 9:30pm EST in a game that can be seen on CBS with the Orange listed as 17.5 point favorites. Wes Johnson had 24 points and seven boards for Syracuse in their 91-85 loss to Georgetown in the Big East tournament quarterfinals at Madison Square Garden last Thursday. Georgetown cashed as 5.5-point underdogs in college basketball betting odds while the teams played OVER the 140.5-point total listed by sportsbooks. Vegas odds for the 2010 NCAA tournament have the Syracuse Orange 7-2 as a betting favorite for March madness.