Will Toledo’s Offense Dominate The MAC Tournament This Year?
The No. 1 Seed Doesn't Even Have The Best 2024 MAC Odds
The MAC Tournament is slated to begin on Thursday, March 14.
While the conference has 12 teams, only the top eight will participate in the conference tournament in Cleveland, Ohio.
The tournament has been held at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse since 2000 and hasn’t stopped since then. Meanwhile, the MAC hasn’t had back-to-back champions since 2018 and 2019. Kent State won the tournament last year and got an automatic bid. However, the Golden Flashes are an 8-seed in this year’s tournament.
They’ll play No. 1 Toledo in the quarterfinal. It’s unlikely we’ll see a back-to-back champion again this year.
Take a look at the 2024 MAC Odds below for our NCAAB basketball predictions.
| Team | Odds *Last Updated: 3/12/2024 |
|---|---|
| Akron | +160 |
| Toledo | +265 |
| Ohio | +340 |
| Kent State | +700 |
| Bowling Green | +1000 |
| Miami OH | +1800 |
| Central Michigan | +2500 |
| Western Michigan | +6000 |
MAC Bracket Format
The MAC Tournament will only take three days and will have just eight participants.
Thursday’s matchups go as follows:
- No. 1 Toledo vs. No. 8 Kent State
- No 4. Central Michigan vs. No. 5 Bowling Green
- No 2. Akron vs. No. 7 Miami OH
- No 3. Ohio vs. No. 6 Western Michigan
No team in the MAC has a bye game or any real advantage except that the highest seed gets to play the lowest seed in the tournament.
After these four games are played, the winners of the first and second games will advance to the semifinals, and the winners of the third and fourth games will also advance to the semifinals.
Once the semifinals conclude on Friday, the MAC Championship game will be held on Saturday on ESPN2 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Best Value On The Board
Ohio Bobcats (+340)
The Ohio Bobcats are one of the most well-rounded teams in the conference. In MAC play, the Bobcats had the second-highest offensive efficiency and added the fourth-best defensive efficiency when playing MAC opponents this NCAAB season.
Ohio shot 53.6% from inside the arc and nearly 37% from downtown in MAC play. The Bobcats added 18.8% of turnovers on defense and held teams to 46.3% from inside the arc.
The Bobcats are led by Jaylin Hunter, who was one of the best five NCAAB players in the conference this season. The senior guard scored nearly 14 points per game but also added 5.1 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.6 steals a night.
Ohio will face Western Michigan in the first round of the Tournament. The Bobcats lost to the Broncos earlier in the year on the road. However, Western Michigan’s defense hasn’t been up to par this season. Ohio’s has.
We like Ohio to advance into the semifinals. In the semis, they’ll likely take on Akron. On February 27, Ohio defeated Akron 74-67 at home.
We should point out that Ohio lost to Akron earlier in the year on the road. But this is still a winnable game. With a win over Akron, Ohio would be in the Championship game with a chance at winning the conference.
Akron Zips (+160)
Many people are eying this potential semifinal matchup between Akron and Ohio. To many, it feels like whoever wins that game could knock off Toledo and win the conference.
You’ll have to pick your poison here. But if you have two futures and they’re both in the semis, you’ll know that at least one of your teams will play for the Conference Championship the following day.
Akron’s team features the best player in the conference: Enrique Freeman. Freeman is a senior leader who played all 31 NCAAB games this season and averaged 18.1 points and 12.8 rebounds per game.
He helped Akron to third in offensive efficiency and second in defensive efficiency when facing other MAC opponents this season.
The Zips held teams to 28.1% from deep and shot 54.6% from inside the arc on offense. In those two areas, Akron will win its matchup against anyone in the conference.
Toledo Rockets (+265)
If the Toledo Rockets catch fire, good luck blowing it out.
The Rockets had an offensive efficiency of 116.2 in MAC play, which led the league by more than three points. The Rockets also shot a league-best 54.6% effective field goal percentage and only turned the ball over 14.3% of the time.
Toledo drained 38% from downtown in MAC play this season. The Rockets won’t dominate the offensive glass. But shooting 38% from deep and 53.6% from inside the arc is not the end of the world.
Meanwhile, Toledo’s defense isn’t nearly as good. But it’s good enough. They’ve limited MAC teams from getting to the foul line this season and led the MAC in that category. Toledo also added 17.8% of turnovers, which was second-best in the conference this season.
Still, Toledo is weak at defending inside. If shots don’t fall and they run into Akron in the finals, that wouldn’t be the ideal matchup, with Akron typically dominant down low.
The Rockets are led by Ra’Heim Moss, who was also one of the best five players in the conference this season. The junior guard averaged 15.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game.
Toledo won’t be our first pick if you’re looking for a betting line on NCAA basketball. However, the 2024 MAC odds do have some value with Ohio.
Make sure to keep checking the NCAAB scores during tournament play. It’s getting exciting!
For NCAAB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
