Best March Madness Parlay for Thursday, March 20

• The 2025 NCAA Tournament goes full swing on Thursday, March 20
• One of my favorite things to do is parlay two of my favorite underdogs on the moneyline
• See below for my +1135 March Madness Parlay for Thursday

One thing we absolutely need on the first “real” day of the NCAA Tournament is a 2-leg moneyline parlay on a couple of dogs. Think about it, upsets happen all the time in this tournament. They just do. I’ve been watching this thing for 35+ years and the one thing you can bank on is that there is nothing you can bank on. (Write that down) For that reason, we should throw out a few 2-leg moneyline parlays on the underdogs we like. Books like FanDuel are giving profit boosts so we can squeeze even more juice out of these things. See below for my favorite 2-legger for Thursday. Feels like the move.

March Madness Parlay for Thursday, March 20

Odds as of March 19 at Fanduel. Download the best March Madness betting apps before the 2025 NCAA Tournament starts.

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March Madness Parlay Leg #1 – The Georgia Bulldogs Will Show Up

The reason we see upsets all the time in this tournament is because of the different styles of basketball being played. Every style is represented and it is fun to watch. That will definitely be the case when Georgia takes on Gonzaga.

One thing about Georgia is, even though they don’t have the pedigree of Gonzaga, they don’t look bothered. They look like they’re getting right.

Squad getting right before the Madness 😮‍💨#GoDawgs pic.twitter.com/Evnl1QW2k3

— Georgia Basketball (@UGABasketball) March 17, 2025

The big difference between these teams is tempo. Georgia would rather slow it down and Gonzaga wants to get into a track meet. One of my favorite things to do is back the underdog in these situations. Especially if they play defense.

On the season, the Bulldogs were 26th in defensive rating according to KenPom. That’s damn good especially since they’re matched up against a team like Gonzaga who needs to drop 70+ points to win. I think the Bulldogs can muck this game up and somehow come away with a win. This shouldn’t be +220.

• The Bet: Georgia ML (+220) – FanDuel

March Madness Parlay Leg #2 – Drake Is No Joke

An underdog parlay for the first day of the NCAA Tournament would not be complete without a mid-major. It just wouldn’t. There are more than a few to choose from, but the Drake Bulldogs are my favorite choice.

I’m not the only one on these guys though, they are a very popular selection.

College basketball teams receiving the ATS most bets at @DKSportsbook 🎟️

1. St. Johns -18.5
2. Drake +6.5
3. Michigan -2.5
4. Yale +7.5
5. Tennessee -18.5 pic.twitter.com/hlJW1d1GsI

— SportsBettingDime (@SBD) March 19, 2025

Just like the Bulldogs from Georgia, these Bulldogs like the play a very slow pace. In fact, they play at the slowest pace in the entire NCAA according to KenPom. We’re talking snail’s pace here people.

Even if you don’t like slow, it’s hard to argue with results. These kids went 30-3 in the Missouri Valley Conference sporting the 46th best defensive rating in the country. Slowing down Missouri while forcing them into bad shots could go a long way in deciding who moves on. We shouldn’t be getting +215 for this thing.

• The Bet: Drake ML (+215) – FanDuel