BetMGM host Olivia Harlan Dekker gives her plays for some of the NCAA Tournament's biggest storylines, and explains why she is selling on both Coach K and - yes - Sister Jean.

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Breaking Down NCAA Tournament's Biggest Storylines - and How to Bet Them

And speaking of everybody loves a good Cinderella story don't we all? But we've all learned by now that betting with your emotions isn't always the best move. That's what I do and we know that that doesn't work. So to help us break down some narratives is a bet. Mgm host Olivia Harlan Dekker. So Olivia we're gonna play a game called Take Stock where we're gonna give you some tournament narratives and you're gonna tell us if you're buying them or selling that stock and why so you ready for this? Okay. Yeah. You know I love a game. Hi how are you? Good to see you. All right let's go to hear that. Alright. First one Duke will go further because it's Coach K's final ride. I'm selling Duke lost their last regular season game that had all the pressure in the world as coach K's last at Cameron Indoor and it was to their rival north Carolina. And then they lost in the A. C. C. Tournament title game by 15 points. I think Duke was lucky to get seated as a two. That is where the thank you for the memories. Coach K. Luck ends I think they could lose as soon as this weekend. Actually if they face Michigan state that would be a 2019 reminiscent. So I could see that happening. Yeah. Not the grand finale that they're hoping for. All right. Next one Baylor will go out before the elite eight continuing the defending champion curse. I'm buying. Not because I believe in the curse but because this Baylor team isn't as healthy or as deep as they were last year. And they really they have a tough path. Also if you like trends I know people embedding do Baylor lost in the quarter final of the big 12 tournament and no team has ever gone on to win it all in the N. C. Double A. Tournament after losing that early in their conference. It's never happened and they've just sustained too many injuries there. Senior big man for the season. Their top shooter, Lj Cryer whose status is unknown moving forward. So yeah their path is tough. I don't think they get to the elite eight. I love that trend. All right next one. Olivia unders will be a lucrative bet as players adjust back to March madness in front of all of the crazy fans. Well first of all thank God everyone's back but selling maybe even the opposite effect. I think fans bring out the best in these games. Ask any hyper competitive player and they play up to the noise. They like the atmosphere, they like the adversity and opposition. So I think you should just approach point total betting as you normally would based on average is what you see these teams do in a normal season. So don't subtract points due to fans being there. We love this one sister jean will make yet another run with a Loyola Chicago sell. But I think they can beat Ohio State first. It'll end their when they lose to Villanova that's who I think they'll face second. Um, this loyal a team isn't as talented without Cameron Krutwig from last year. He was kind of the darling of the tournament, but they've been great with a first year head coach. They won their conference, they haven't lost a game in a month. It's really good defense again, which is certainly how they went so far last year. And Ohio State is their first opponent. They don't play very tough defense. They allow a lot of points and although Ohio State has two first round draft picks, they have more length. They have more talent than loyal of Chicago. Their season has been a big disappointment, a lot of injuries and adversity. So I can see this first game going to loyal in Chicago for sure. As long as we can talk about sister jean just a little bit longer. That's why we're here. Sister meme. Sister meme, we have to keep her on our internet. Exactly. All right. Next one, A team will go on a run on the back of one single player. So who is that player for you that will single handedly advance his team. Okay. I like JD note from Arkansas. He was just named an all american and it's so obvious why he makes up so much of the razorbacks offense. Second most points per game in the sec. But he also leads the conference with over two steals a game. He also grabbed you about five boards a game, he's everywhere and he's coming off his worst shooting game of the season in the sec championship. So I think he comes out on fire. So look out for him early. Alright, another one for you. The public is right to put the money bets and money on Vermont at plus 5.5 against four seed Arkansas. Okay, this kind of goes against what I just said because I was hyping up Arkansas but this game is really dangerous. I think I like Vermont at plus 5.5. The county mats. The Catamounts are talented double digit seed. They start five seniors, they take good care of the ball, great three point shooting, solid defense, They've gone 22 and one in their last 23 games and that one loss was by one point in overtime. So they're winners. Their last two wins were by a combined 70 points. I know it's obviously very different levels here but Arkansas may overlook them. And don't forget the game isn't buffalo New York a little bit closer to home. Alright, last question for you Olivia, give us your last four and your champion, we're keeping tabs. Okay, when I first did this, I had 31 seeds making the final four at first and my husband said I could not go on air and say that that's no fun at all, I couldn't come on here and do that too. So I'm switching it up a bit Gonzaga Purdue, although I may want to change that to Kentucky. After further thought in the east, I heard Alex had him win it all, Kansas and Tennessee throw in a couple of three seeds there for you and I have Gonzaga winning it all. It's so hard to pick it and stick to it. Olivia, Thank you so much for joining us. That is Bet MGM Host Olivia Harlan Dekker.