March is here, Selection Sunday is complete, and the NCAA Tournament bracket is set. College basketball is about to take center stage in the American sports world. The NCAA Tournament action gets underway with the First Four play-in games this Tuesday and Wednesday, and the First Round begins on Thursday, March 19th. I hope you have your vacation or sick days ready for Thursday and Friday.
March Madness is consistently one of the most wagered on sporting events in the United States every year. I’m expecting a huge amount of betting on this years NCAA Tournament.
On this page I will recommend two betting sites for California residents, look at the betting options for March Madness, and finish up with a simple 3 step guide you can follow to get March Madness wagers placed online in minutes.
Best Sportsbooks for California Residents
- Built for American bettors
- Wide variety of competitive betting lines
- Easy to navigate betting platform
- Long history as a trusted sportsbook
Bovada and BetOnline are our two top rated betting sites for California residents. Both sites are focused on the American market and provide a great betting experience for US bettors. They are each popular and trusted across the United States.
For the rest of this guide I will be using Bovada.lv for all examples.
March Madness Betting in California
At this time it is not legal to operate a sportsbook in the state of California.
That said, it’s not illegal for California residents to place bets through an offshore betting site that is licensed and regulated outside of the USA. Bovada and BetOnline both fall into this category, which is why they have both served the USA betting market for over the past decade.
Check out our California sports betting section to learn more about sports betting in the state.
March Madness Betting Options
First of all let’s look at the odds to win the NCAA Tournament outright, and then we’ll look at some of the bets you can make on individual games during March Madness.
Here are the tournament winner odds from Bovada.lv and BetOnline.ag (taken March 17th). I included all of the favorites with odds of 150/1 or better.
| Team | Seed | Bovada | BetOnline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke | 1 | +325 | +375 |
| Michigan | 1 | +325 | +400 |
| Arizona | 1 | +375 | +360 |
| Florida | 1 | +700 | +700 |
| Houston | 2 | +950 | +1200 |
| Iowa State | 2 | +1800 | +1600 |
| Connecticut | 2 | +2000 | +2200 |
| Illinois | 3 | +2100 | +2200 |
| Purdue | 2 | +2500 | +2000 |
| Gonzaga | 3 | +4000 | +6600 |
| Michigan State | 3 | +5500 | +6000 |
| Arkansas | 4 | +6000 | +4000 |
| St. John’s | 5 | +6000 | +5000 |
| Kansas | 4 | +7000 | +6600 |
| Vanderbilt | 5 | +7500 | +7500 |
| Virginia | 3 | +7500 | +6600 |
| Wisconsin | 5 | +8000 | +10000 |
| Texas Tech | 5 | +10000 | +10000 |
| Louisville | 6 | +12500 | +12500 |
| Tennessee | 6 | +12500 | +12500 |
| Alabama | 4 | +15000 | +6600 |
| Nebraska | 4 | +15000 | +10000 |
You can also bet on the winner of each region on the NCAA Tournament Futures page at either Bovada or BetOnline.
Now let’s look at a screenshot from an NCAA basketball game to see the three popular bets you can make on a March Madness game:
These odds are from the first round game between UCLA and Central Florida (odds from Bovada.lv on March 17th).
The spread, win (money line) and total (over/under) are the three common bets you can make on a game.
- Spread – In the example, UCLA must win by 7 or more to cover the 6 point spread. Central Florida can win the game outright or lose by 5 or fewer points. If UCLA wins by exactly 6 points then the spread bets would push.
- Win – Also known as the money line, with this bet you are simply wagering on which team will win the game. The odds change depending on each teams chances to win. In the above example you would have to risk $245 to win $100 betting on UCLA, while a $100 on Central Florida would win $205 if they pulled off the upset.
- Total – The oddsmaker will set a total and you can can wager on whether the total points scored in the game by both teams will be over or under the set amount.
Bet On March Madness in California – 3 Step Guide
Complete these three steps to get your March Madness bets placed online. I’m using Bovada for this three step guide, but the steps to place a March Madness bet at BetOnline.ag are basically the same.
Step 1. Open a Bovada.lv Account
Click the above link and complete the Create An Account form to open your account.
Step 2. Deposit
After logging into your new account click on the ‘Deposit’ button. Select your preferred deposit method (Visa, MasterCard or bitcoin) and complete the instructions to fund your account.
You will receive a 50% matching bonus up to $250 on your first deposit. You do need to claim this bonus in the “My Rewards” section of your account.
Step 3. Place Your March Madness Bets
Click ‘Sports’ from the top menu bar, and select ‘Basketball’ from the secondary sports menu.
Select ‘March Madness’ or ‘March Madness Futures’ from the ‘Trending Competitions’ drop down menu on the Basketball page.
Select the odds of the bet you want to make and enter your risk amounts on the Bet Slip. Click ‘Place Bets’ to confirm your wagers.
Here’s a screenshot to show you the clicks using a spread bet from one of the First Four games:
That’s it. Ready to bet? Click here to visit Bovada.lv.