NCAA Men’s Basketball picks are a popular form of sports betting online. If you know the odds and study the game and lines, you can come out ahead.

During March Madness, its about trying to guess the final team out of 64. Even though that seems like an impossible challenge, it’s very possible. NCAA Men’s basketball predictions that people usually pick for march madness is to NOT go with the number one team overall. It is very rare that the number 1 team overall takes it in March Madness. It is the most exciting thing to watch and there are usually so many upsets.

Odds of predicting all 64 teams correctly are 1 in over 5 million. This means you are guaranteed to get some picks wrong, you just don’t want to get them wrong in the later rounds.

The NCAA tournament is actually pretty random. Who could have guessed last year that George Mason University - a No. 11 seed - would make the Final Four? Well, 1,853 out of more than 1.5 million people who entered ESPN.com’s Tournament Challenge. This is why college basketball favorites are not your best picks during March Madness.

Here’s some good betting advice for betting on March Madness: don’t pick the higher seeds to win all the games. Even most casual college basketball fans know better than to pick all the No. 1 seeds to make it to the Final Four. Even picking 3 number 1 team’s can be a major risk. The last time 3 number one teams made it to the final four was 2001. Try to go with two No. one seeds and then some combination of twos, threes and fours for the last two spots. With some studying of the brackets and knowing the history of the brackets will put you on the right track. No one will correctly guess all 64 teams, if you do there are many sites that will offer you over a million dollars if you do, that’s how unlikely it is.

Ken Griffey Jr. has decided to return to the Seattle Mariners.

“He’s coming home,” General Manager Jack Zduriencik confirmed on Wednesday night. “I can’t begin to tell you how ecstatic we are. He is, too.”

The contract for Griffey, 39, is for one year and is believed to be worth $2 million in base salary, plus incentives. Atlanta was originally thought to be Griffey’s choice on Tuesday because the Braves’ spring training camp is near the Griffey family home in Orlando, Fla., and Atlanta is about an hour away by air. Instead Ken Griffey Jr chose to honor the promise made two years ago to finish his career as a Mariner.

5. James Laurinatis

James is an Ohio St. MLB. James stands 6′3″, 245 lbs and he runs a 4.6 40 yard dash. James’ strengths are his athletic ability with James being a former hockey star. James is a senior. His cons are his tendency to try to deliver the big hit rather than just wrapping up the offensive player.

4. Andre Smith

Andre is a LT for Alabama. He is listed at 6′4″, 330 lbs and runs a 5.3 40 yard dash. Smith has the size and strength to be a star in the NFL but he doesn’t have the speed or quickness needed to excel to a pro bowler. Andre is a Junior.

3. Malcolm Jenkins

Malcolm is a CB for Ohio St. He is also one of my favorites in this Draft because of his combination of brain, size, speed, and strength. Malcolm is a senior who runs a 4.4 40 yard dash. He is listed at 6′1″, 201 lbs. He also is known for his physicality by getting into WR’s heads.

2. Sam Bradford

Sam is an eligible sophomore. He plays QB for Oklahoma. In just 2 years he has shown that he has the ability to take over games and become a superstar in the NFL. Sam is 6′4″, 220 lbs and he runs between a 4.5-4.6 40 yard dash. His ability to throw his passes accurately and with power on it gives him the chance to be the #1 QB taken and maybe for the Lions the No. 1 pick in the Draft.

1. Michael Crabtree

Crabtree is hands-down the best WR prospect since Larry Fitzgerald. His ability to run a 4.4 40 yard dash and easily pass CB’s will give him the chance to be the first WR to be selected No. 1 overall since Keyshawn Johnson. Crabtree is an eligible Sophomore. His only con is that he might be prone to injury cause he doesn’t get down on 1st contact. Is listed at 6′3″, 214 lbs.

Bet among friends at first. If you have a friend who attended Rutgers and their team is playing the Notre Dame, then figure out some way to bet against them. Most die-hard alumnus will give you even money on their team to beat even a strongly favored opponent. Even if you should somehow lose, in the long run this friend will be paying you off for years. If you’re emotionally invested in a game, it’s best not to bet on it. Emotions and gambling don’t mix well.

If you have to bet in a casino, then at least make the casinos work against each other. In Vegas, take a walk from one casino to another to compare odds. Most of the time it’s the less upscale local casinos that will reward you with that extra half point in your favor. This is a key component of sports betting. Finding favorable odds is maybe the most important aspect of making a smart sports bet. Finding a difference of half a point in your favor is huge. In a game where both teams’ defenses are stellar, you’ll expect it to be a low-scoring affair. If one team is favored by 3 points to win and all of a sudden the line changes to -3.5, then the favorite team has to win by more than a field goal. That’s another scoring opportunity in what you expect to be a very tight game of clock management and field position. Now, your original intent to bet on the favorite shifts to perhaps betting on the underdog. Most sports books don’t allow cell phones. One of the reasons is they don’t want bettors comparing odds with their friends at another sports book.

Parlays and teasers are almost always sucker bets. Unless you’ve done plenty of research, avoid these bets.

Participate in a fantasy league. This is a great way to keep on top of players and teams that otherwise would be of little interest to you. Knowing that a particular player performs better indoors than outdoors throughout the regular season could pay off big in a domed Super Bowl.

1. Louisville Cardinals, 12-8 against the spread: Louisville covered seven straight games, including tough ones against Pittsburgh and Syracuse, before failing to cover against the West Virginia Mountaineers in their last.

2. Xavier Musketeers, 12-7 against the spread: They are five games above .500 against the betting spread and have reeled off eight straight victories. This is the best team in the Atlantic-10 and they should keep winning against the spread.

3. Duke Blue Devils, 11-8-1 against the spread: Their record against the spread is still a winning one, but they have to start beating teams like Wake Forest straight-up on the road.

4. Oklahoma Sooners, 10-6-1 against the spread: The class of the Big-12 continues to impress with victories straight-up and against the spread versus Baylor and Oklahoma State.

5. Butler Bulldogs, 12-5-1 against the spread: They have one of the best against the spread records in college basketball and I could rank them much higher in this but they play a soft schedule and I have the feeling that the NCAA odds makers are onto these guys.

6. Washington Huskies, 12-7 against the spread: The Huskies are easily the best team against the spread in the Pac-10, but their on the road against the California Golden Bears in their next game.

7. Stanford Cardinal, 13-5 against the spread: What a great against the spread record! 13 and 5 after their embarrassing loss to the UCLA Bruins. They will have to bounce back and might not with tough games coming up against Washington, Washington State and California.

8. San Diego State Aztecs, 10-5-1 against the spread: They’re 15 and 5 straight-up and have gone 7 and 2 against the spread in their last 9 games.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have made a new offer to Manny Ramirez: one year and $25 million, according to a major league source. Dodgers GM Ned Colletti confirmed to ESPN.com that he met with Ramirez’s agent, Scott Boras, on Monday and presented the new offer in person.

Colletti declined to confirm any details of the offer. But the offer was confirmed by another source with knowledge of the discussions. It’s believed that Manny Ramirez and Scott Boras were given a 2 day deadline to accept the offer. The new offer is a step up from the Dodgers’ previous offer. On Election Day, the Dodgers offered Ramirez $15 million for the 2009 season, $22.5 million in 2010 and a $7.5 million buyout or $22.5 million club option for 2011. That contract would have maxed out at $60 million over three years if the Dodgers picked up the option.

Ben Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes improvised the 6-yard touchdown with 35 seconds left that gave the Pittsburgh Steelers a record-setting sixth Super Bowl victory, 27-23 over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday night.

“Great players step up in big-time games to make plays,” said Holmes, the game’s MVP. He said he told Roethlisberger that he “wanted to be the guy to make the plays for this team.”

The Steelers (15-4), winning their second Super Bowl in four seasons, led 20-7 in the fourth quarter, only to see Warner and the Cardinals stage a remarkable rally to go in front 23-20 with 2:37 remaining.

Roethlisberger and Holmes nailed it home, and when Warner fumbled in the final seconds, the Cardinals’ chance of winning their first NFL crown since 1947 was gone. The Cardinals (12-8), playing in their first Super Bowl since 1948, lost their cool after Harrison’s big play. They had three penalties to keep Pittsburgh’s 79-yard drive going, a 16-play march that ended with Jeff Reed’s 21-yard field goal for a 20-7 lead.