It’s almost tournament time in the sport of college basketball, and not the big tournament that is held in March. There are a number of early season tournaments that take place throughout the country, and the ESPN Invitational is set to begin on Thanksgiving dDay.
There are eight teams set to compete in the ESPN Invitational and six of those teams were in the NCAA Tournament a season ago. That should create a terrific event this year, and it’s also going to provide some great betting options as well.
Here is a look at the ESPN Invitational betting odds, with a betting pick included.
Two Big Favorites
When looking at the field of eight for this event, there are two teams that really stand out at first glance. That is true with the betting odds as well as both the FAU Owls and Texas A&M Aggies are going to be the betting favorites.
The betting odds for each of these teams are set at +250, and both the Owls and Aggies feel like they can go on deep runs in March later this year. FAU is going to get a slight boost from the home crowd, but you can expect to see plenty of Aggies fans in Florida as well.
FAU is a team that has had a ton of success and they also have some experience that will come in handy in the later stages of this tournament. Texas A&M brought in a ton of talent this offseason, and they are hoping that things start to gel quickly.
Rest of the Field
Before discussing the rest of the teams in this event, here is a look at the betting odds for the other six teams:
- Iowa State +400
- Boise State +850
- Virginia Tech +1200
- Penn State +1200
- VCU +2200
- Butler +3300
All odds listed above are courtesy of BetDSI/s/betdsi/.
Iowa State and Boise State look like the two biggest challengers to the betting favorites, and they are on the other side of the bracket. That could give the Cyclones and Broncos a clear path to the championship game, and that’s something to consider.
The rest of the field is full of some teams with a lot of question marks, but there is still talent there also. You can easily see these teams make a run, but it’s going to take some upsets along the way to get that done.
Penn State has to deal with Texas A&M in the first round, while Butler has to deal with FAU. That is why you see the odds for those teams so low, and you will also see some large spreads in those matchups.
Boise State and Virginia Tech are set to meet in the first round of this event, and it will be the final game of the day. It might be worth waiting to see which of these teams win, as they will then be right in the mix.
You are going to see some great value in betting on any of these six teams, but you are also taking a pretty big risk.
Can’t Go Against the Owls
The tournament organizers didn’t set this tournament up too well as the two best teams are likely to meet up in the second round. While that should almost guarantee a game between FAU and Texas A&M, one of those teams won’t even make it into the final game.
You don’t always want to just bet on the favorites in an early season college basketball tournament, but that’s the best option in this one. Go with the FAU Owls at +250 to win the 2023 ESPN Invitational.
