(as they should be)
Texas A&M is back in the NCAA Tournament for the third year in a row, facing the Yale Bulldogs in the opening round on Thursday, March 20. As a 4 seed playing a 13 seed, the Aggies obviously go in as the favorite, and the betting odds reflect that. Opening odds from FanDuel Sportsbook have A&M listed at -7.5.
The Aggies are 7-3 against the spread this season when they have the rest advantage, and given that their last game was Thursday compared to Sunday for Yale, that should certainly come into play. After making deep conference tournament runs in each of the last three seasons, this is the first time the Aggies have entered March Madness with a significant rest advantage under Buzz Williams.
The Aggies have also made the Sweet 16 in every season in which they have been ranked as a 4 seed or higher (granted, that’s just two other seasons), and the program is 5-0 all-time against 11 seeds or lower in the NCAA Tournament.