Thursday’s NCAA Tournament odds board tips off with Creighton taking on Louisville at 12:15 p.m. ET.
It is followed by seven more games getting underway before 5 p.m. ET, which may be difficult for handicappers stuck at work or with other responsibilities, especially those interested in tracking NCAA Tournament odds movement and betting data leading up to Thursday’s tips.
But with the help of Action PRO’s cutting edge tools and premium picks, we can quickly and efficiently determine the smartest NCAA Tournament predictions for Thursday’s early slate of games, which include compelling value bets for:
- Creighton vs. Louisville (12:15 p.m. ET)
- High Point vs. Purdue (12:40 p.m. ET)
And for the record, Action PRO’s High Point vs. Purdue prediction below is not on the spread, which has been a very trendy pick all week, and instead details an under-the-radar over/under value bet.
NCAA Tournament Odds, 2 Predictions for Thursday
*Odds, projections as of Wednesday afternoon
Creighton vs. Louisville Prediction
12:15 p.m. ET | CBS
Creighton vs. Louisville is not only Thursday’s first NCAA Tournament matchup, but it’s also attracting attention from the sharpest college basketball bettors.
The Cardinals are 2.5-point spread favorites against the Bluejays as of the time of writing.
And despite the short spread, this number opened up even tighter — Creighton -1.5, to be exact — before sharps steamed Louisville, moving the line out to -2.5.
PRO Pick: Louisville -2.5 (-110) — Fanatics
[quickslipbasic bookname=”Fanatics” booklogo=”https://assets.actionnetwork.com/573837_FanaticsSportsbook20ALT.png” image=”https://images.actionnetwork.com/blog/2025/03/0-1-2.jpg” buttontext=”Tail This Pick on Fanatics!” buttonlink=”https://www.scoresandodds.com/all/parlay?quickslip=1&onelink=/5kut/34htome9?sharedBy=QS_0105&ref=10001″][/quickslipbasic]
High Point vs. Purdue Prediction
12:40 p.m. ET | truTV
High Point is a very trendy sleeper heading into the NCAA Tournament and a team we highlighted earlier this week that was attracting early wiseguy action.
However, it appears that professionals aren’t just interested in the spread.
Respected players have bet this total down from 154.5 to 153.5, with some shops moving another half-point to 153.
PRO Pick: Under 153.5 (-110) — Fanatics
[quickslipbasic bookname=”Fanatics” booklogo=”https://assets.actionnetwork.com/573837_FanaticsSportsbook20ALT.png” image=”https://images.actionnetwork.com/blog/2025/03/0-1-3.jpg” buttontext=”Tail this Pick on Fanatics!” buttonlink=”Under: https://www.scoresandodds.com/all/parlay?quickslip=1&onelink=/5kut/2cttn7vo?sharedBy=QS_0105&ref=10001″][/quickslipbasic]
_InlineAdBlock