2019 Big West Conference Tournament Odds: UC Irvine the Odds-On Favorite

• UC Irvine (27-5, 15-1) had the best record in the Big West Conference
• The Anteaters are the clear favorites heading into the conference tournament
• Should bettors go chalk or ride an underdog?

The Big West Conference tournament tips off Thursday, March 14th, at the Honda Center in Anaheim and concludes two days later (Saturday, March 16th).

Oddsmakers see top-seeded UC Irvine (15-1 Big West) as the clear favorite.

2019 Big West Conference Tournament Odds

UC Irvine draws no. 8 UC Riverside in the first round, while no. 4 Hawaii faces. no. 5 Long Beach.

On the bottom half, no. 2 UC Santa Barbara meets no. 7 Cal State Northridge and no. 3 Cal State Fullerton battles no. 6 UC Davis. But note that the bracket is reseed for the semis. So if UC Irvine advances, they get the luxury of facing the lowest-seeded team remaining.

2019 Big West Tournament Bracket

The Best Bet in Big West?

There are times to get creative when you’re betting, but this is not one of them.  The Big West Conference tournament is where you go chalk and stare at your bank account waiting for the deposit.

When the tournament futures were released, the Big West was one of the first I looked at knowing how much I like UC Irvine.  The -170 price tag seems high, but I was actually surprised it wasn’t shorter.

There’s little threat to the Anteaters in this tournament; they finished with a 15-1 record in the conference and won the regular season title by five games.

In the quarters, they’ll take on UC Riverside, who are listed at +6100.  Assuming they cake walk through that game, their next opponent will be no better than Hawaii, a team that was one game over .500 in conference play.

They only need to win three games to capture the title and they’ll be massive favorites in two of them.

It’s been a fun journey so far but we’re #StillHungry for more🐜🍴 pic.twitter.com/FYvr9jQ4oh

— UCI Men's Basketball (@UCImbb) March 11, 2019

Even if Santa Barbara makes the final, they’d still be considerable favorites in that game, as well. The Anteaters beat Santa Barbara twice, are ranked 81 spots better at KenPom, and haven’t lost since mid-January. When/if they make the finals, they’ll be riding a 15-game win streak.

Santa Barbara is a mere 4-4 in its last eight.

Depth The Biggest Advantage For UC Irvine

The most amazing stat for UC Irvine is that they dominated league play and racked up 27 total wins despite having a leading scorer who averaged only 12.1 points per game.  Max Hazzard led an offensive crew that often rotated who would take home the player of the game title.

It can make bettors uneasy, but the fact is, opposing coaches have a very tough time game planning when they never know who will step up.

.@UCImbb capped off a historic regular season tonight but they are #StillHungry for more! pic.twitter.com/9ifsaJE2RX

— UC Irvine Athletics (@UCIAthletics) March 10, 2019

The team also doesn’t have a player averaging more than 3.0 assists per game; it is the ultimate committee approach.

Take that as a positive, not a reason to fade them.  Any bet placed on an underdog in this conference should be viewed as a lottery ticket.  There’s fun in having those sometimes, so if you want to sprinkle action on others in the conference, by all means have some fun.

The smart play, though, is taking the mega-favorite that you can get for only -170.

SBD’s NCAA conference tournament coverage:

• 2019 ACC Tournament Odds: Virginia, not Duke, Listed as Slight Favorite
• 2019 SEC Tournament Odds: Tennessee & Kentucky Favored Over LSU
• 2019 Big East Conference Tournament Odds: Villanova Favored Over Slumping Marquette
• 2019 MEAC Tournament Odds: Norfolk State Listed as Favorites
• Lipscomb Odds-On Favorite to Win NCAAM Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament
• Colgate Odds-On Favorite to Win Patriot League Tournament
• 2019 Horizon League Tournament Odds: Northern Kentucky Favored
• 2019 Big South Tournament Odds: Radford Favored
• 2019 MAAC Tournament Odds: Iona & Rider Listed as Co-Favorites
• 2019 Colonial Conference Tournament Odds: Hofstra Given Edge Over Northeastern
• Saint Francis Red Flash Favored to Win 2019 Northeast Conference Tournament
• Belmont Favored Over Murray State in Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
• 2019 West Coast Conference Tournament Odds: Should You Bet Against Gonzaga?
• 2019 Summit Conference Tournament Odds: South Dakota St Heavily Favored
• Wofford Listed as Odds-On Favorite in 2019 Southern Conference Tournament
• Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Odds: Loyola-Chicago Favored