First up in the Big Dance - Alabama State vs. Morehead State

BetUS NCAA Basketball Sports Betting Odds: MOREHEAD STATE -3.5, Total 130

Here are some of the NCAA basketball sports betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* ALST has won 20 of its last 22 games SU

* MORE has covered six of its last seven games

* MORE has won 16 of its last 23 games SU

Alabama State comes into this game as both the regular season and tournament champions of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), while Morehead State won the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) tournament.

Get the BetUS March Madness Bracket Here!

What is well worth taking a look at in games between these schools from lesser conferences is how they performed against non-conference foes. Alabama State was blown away by Nebraska (80-51) at Lincoln, which is a tough place to play. However, they also put forth very competitive efforts against a number of different teams, including Illinois State (77-71), SEC champ Mississippi State (76-67), Ole Miss, when they were still an optimistic team (85-81) and Auburn (77-72). The moral of the story, I guess, is that they can hang in there against better teams.

Morehead State also lost to Illinois State by six points, not to mention Kent State by three. But the Eagles flopped against their best opposition, getting beaten by double digits by James Madison (74-62), Drake (86-70), Vanderbilt (74-48) and Louisville (79-41). They also lost six conference games, and took a four-game losing streak into the post-season, but got into the Big Dance by getting hot in the OVC tourney, winning and covering against Eastern Kentucky, Tennessee-Martin and Austin Peay.

Morehead State shot less than 44% on the season, and possesses only one three-point threat in forward Maze Stallworth. The workhorse up front is 6'8" Kenneth Faried (13.9 ppg, 12.8 rpg), but Alabama State's 7'1" Chief Kickingstallionsims (2.7 blocks/game) may be able to neutralize him to an extent. Where Alabama State really has an edge here is the backcourt, where they get an ideal blend of passing and shooting between guards Brandon Brooks and Andrew Hayes, who tallied over 27 ppg between them.

Alabama State, which went toe-to-toe with Arizona State in last year's NIT, is still smarting over last year's conference tournament, where it lost to Jackson State. They're not about to let another winnable opportunity slip by. We're taking the points with the Hornets, the 3.5-point underdog in the BetUS NCAA tournament betting odds.

JAY'S PLAY: ALABAMA STATE +3.5 ***

(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)