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The First Four games officially kick off the NCAA Tournament ever since the field expanded to 68 teams. This year’s First Four games are Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Texas Southern, Wyoming vs. Indiana, Bryant vs. Wright State and Notre Dame vs. Rutgers. The matchups between the No. 16 seeds will be for a spot in the South and Midwest Regions, while the at-large games will place teams in the West and East regions.
Here’s a look at the First Four games in 2022. Odds are via DraftKings Sportsbook.
NCAA Tournament: First Four results
No. 16 Texas A&M Corpus Christi vs. No. 16 Texas Southern
Spread: Texas Southern -3.5
Final Score: Texas Southern 76, Texas A&M CC 67
First Round matchup: No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 16 Texas Southern
Texas Southern advances out of the First Four to face Kansas in the first round of the tournament. The Tigers covered the spread at 3.5 points on DraftKings Sportsbook. The game was tight most of the way before Texas Southern pulled away later in the second half. CC made it interesting late in the game but wasn’t able to capitalize.
No. 12 Indiana vs. No. 12 Wyoming
Spread: Indiana -4.5
Final Score: Indiana 66, Wyoming 58
First Round matchup: No. 5 Saint Mary’s vs. No. 12 Indiana
Indiana did its best job of trying to give the game to Wyoming. In the end, the Hoosiers will go on to the first round of the NCAA Tournament and will face St. Mary’s in the first round on Thursday. The end of the game did have big-time betting implications with the spread 4.5 points. Indy ultimately held on to cover the spread.
No. 16 Bryant vs. No. 16 Wright State
Spread: Wright State -3.5
Final Score: Wright State 93, Bryant 82
First Round matchup: No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 16 Wright State
The Raiders got a massive game from Tanner Holden, who poured in 31 points on 11-15 shooting and added 11 rebounds. While it was a two-point game at halftime, Bryant’s inability to knock down shots (4-24 from three-point range) was the difference here. Wright State will now face an Arizona team that will pose a whole other kind of test all-together.
No. 11 Notre Dame vs. No. 11 Rutgers
Spread: Notre Dame -1
Final Score: Notre Dame 89, Rutgers 87
First Round matchup: No. 6 Alabama vs. No. 11 Notre Dame
What a way to close out the First Four. Notre Dame holds on in 2OT to beat the Scarlet Knights by two on an offensive rebound and put-back with 1.4 seconds left in the game. It was back and forth all night and Rutger had the edge at halftime but the second half was close until the end of regulation. Notre Dame advances to play the Crimson Tide in the first round on Friday.
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