Selection Sunday is less than three weeks away as March Madness fever heats up across Ohio sports betting. With the Division I NCAA Men’s Tournament right around the corner, BetOhio.com utilized Google Trends to look at the highest search volume of the terms, “March Madness,” “College Basketball” and “NCAA Tournament” in the United States over the past 30 days.
After gathering data on Feb. 16, we determined the states with the most interest in the upcoming tournament.
Here are the results, and stay close to this site for the best Ohio sportsbook promos when March Madness finally arrives.
States With Most Interest in 2023 NCAA Tournament
Not Ohio's Strongest Year
The Buckeye State cracks the Top 10 in a tie with Wisconsin for the state with the eighth-most interest in the upcoming tournament. Part of Ohio’s excitement comes from Xavier, as the Musketeers came in at No. 16 in the nation in the latest Associated Press men’s basketball poll.
Xavier (20-8) has three regular-season games left as it attempts to catch No. 10 Marquette for a Big East regular-season title ahead of the conference tournament. Currently on DraftKings Ohio Sportsbook, Xavier is +650 to win the regular-season conference title after falling to Marquette by a point on Feb. 15.
Xavier, currently projected as a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament by ESPN’s bracketology, is +750 to reach the Final Four and 40-to-1 (+4000) to win the national championship, according to DraftKings.
Unfortunately for Ohio residents, Xavier could be the only representative of the state to make the NCAA Tournament, a bummer in the first year sportsbooks get a crack at March Madness.
Of the well-known programs, Ohio State and the University of Cincinnati each have less than a 7% chance to make the tournament, according to ESPN’s Bracketology. Of course, the Mid-American Conference (MAC) is favored to send an Ohio program to the dance.
Kent State (22-6, 12-3 MAC) and Toledo (22-6, 13-2 MAC) headline the conference and will be the favorites for the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Horizon League has a bid up for grabs, too. The favorite is Youngstown State, which could make the NCAA Tournament for the first time as a Division I program with a run in the Horizon League Tournament.
Keep it here at BetOhio in the leadup to the Big Dance, and look for a BetMGM Ohio bonus code.
