SEC betting preview for Day 2 at the NCAA Tournament

The opening round of the NCAA Tournament is here, and Day 1 did not disappoint.

The SEC had 4 teams in action on Thursday — Mississippi State, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Only Tennessee survived. Kentucky lost to 14-seed Oakland while South Carolina was upset by 11-seed Oregon and Mississippi State was beaten by 9-seed Michigan State. After watching its peers struggle, Tennessee blew past Saint Peter’s and into the second round.

Florida, Texas A&M, Alabama, and Auburn are all in action on Friday, hoping for better fortune than the Thursday group.

Here’s a look at the SEC’s slate for Day 2:

(All times Eastern; spread and totals via FanDuel)

4 Auburn vs. 13 Yale | 4:15 p.m. | TNT | Spokane, Washington

The Tigers (27-7) have won 6 straight as they surge into the NCAA Tournament. Coach Bruce Pearl’s group went 3-for-3 at the SEC Tournament to win their first conference tourney title since the 2018-19 season. They have climbed up to fourth nationally in KenPom’s rankings thanks to one of the nation’s best defenses.

Yale (22-9) won the Ivy League’s auto-bid in thrilling fashion. The Bulldogs trailed Brown 60-54 with 27 seconds remaining in the Ivy League Tournament title game. Two missed free throws from Brown with 11 seconds on the clock left the door open and Matt Knowling dropped in a baseline floater at the buzzer to win it. Yale takes a by-committee approach, with 5 guys averaging at least 10 points a game and no one scoring more than 15 a night.

Auburn is 21-11-2 against the spread this season. Yale is 17-12.

Spread: Auburn -13.5

Total: 140.5

7 Florida vs. 10 Colorado | 4:30 p.m. | TBS | Indianapolis, Indiana

The Gators (24-11) advanced to the SEC Tournament title game but were dealt a major blow in the opening minutes of what would become a loss to Auburn. Center Micah Handlogten fractured his leg against Auburn and recently underwent surgery. He’ll be in Indianapolis to cheer the Gators on, but they’ll miss what he provides. Handlogten ranked fifth in the SEC with 7.1 rebounds per game during the regular season. He also went into the SEC Tournament title game ranked inside the top five nationally in offensive rebounding percentage.

Florida is making its first appearance at the NCAAs in 3 years.

Colorado (25-10) is back in the NCAA Tournament for just the second time in the last 8 years. The Buffs closed the regular season on a 6-game winning streak and extended that streak to 8 before losing to Oregon in the Pac-12 Tournament semis. Guard KJ Simpson leads the way, scoring 19.6 points a game and dishing 4.8 assists.

Florida is 22-12-1 against the spread while CU is 18-17 ATS. This is one of the closer games of the first round. Florida is actually a 1.5-point favorite at BetMGM and ESPN BET, but Colorado is the favored team as most other online sportsbook apps.

Spread: Colorado -1.5

Total: 157.5

8 Nebraska vs. 9 Texas A&M | 6:50 p.m. | TNT | Memphis, Tennessee

Texas A&M (20-14) pushed its way into the field with a 3-game winning streak to close out the regular season and then a 97-87 upset of Kentucky in the quarters at the conference tournament. Now that they’ve made it back to the Big Dance, the Aggies are seeking their first tournament win under coach Buzz Williams. To do so, they’ll lean on one of the most electric scorers in the field — guard Wade Taylor IV. Taylor averages 18.9 points per game this season and is coming off of consecutive 30-point performances.

But Nebraska (23-10) has its own combustible scorer to give this matchup some real potential. The Huskers make more than 9 triples a game (24th nationally) and guard Keisei Tominaga gets up 6 a game. Tominaga has 7 games this season with at least 20 points and 7 games with at least 4 made 3s. Nebraska is in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2013-14 season and looking for the program’s first-ever tournament win.

Nebraska is 21-12 against the spread this season. Texas A&M is 16-18.

Spread: Nebraska -1.5

Total: 148.5

4 Alabama vs. 13 Charleston | 7:35 p.m. | truTV | Spokane, Washington

Nate Oats and the Crimson Tide (21-11) are back in the NCAA Tournament for a fourth consecutive season. Oats hasn’t been able to break through the Sweet 16 yet, though, and that’ll loom large over this run. The Tide have lost in the Sweet 16 twice in their last 3 appearances at the Big Dance. If this is the team to break through, it’ll be senior guard Mark Sears leading the way. The Muscle Shoals native is averaging 21.1 points a game this season for Alabama.

Charleston (27-7) won the CAA Tournament in overtime to capture the school’s second consecutive tournament title and berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars enter the Big Dance with the nation’s second-longest active winning streak at 12 games. Guard Reyne Smith leads the team in scoring at 12.8 a game. He’s tied for eighth nationally in 3-pointers made this year. Of his 313 shot attempts this season, only 37 of them have been inside the 3-point line.

Alabama is 16-15-1 against the spread while Charleston is 15-17-1 ATS.

Spread: Alabama -9.5

Total: 173.5

2 picks

Charleston G Reyne Smith over 3.5 3-pointers (+114 via DraftKings)

We just watched this story unfold on Thursday night. A 14-seed went toe to toe with an SEC team that leans heavily on its offense and didn’t blink. For a player like Smith, watching Jack Gohlke light up Kentucky should be a confidence booster. Gohlke takes 8 triples a game and has 14 games with at least 4 makes from beyond the arc this season.

Texas A&M G Wade Taylor IV over 20.5 alt points (+130 via DraftKings)

Taylor has taken his game to another level in the postseason and Texas A&M would be wise to keep letting him fire away. Taylor scored 82 points in 3 games at the SEC Tournament, and he did so on huge volume. Nebraska just gave up 40 to Illinois guard Terrence Shannon in the Big Ten Tournament and, given the stakes of this game for NU, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Huskers come out a little tight. Nebraska has a solid 2-point defense but it gives up a ton of 3s.