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The Siena Saints open the NCAA Tournament as the No. 16 seed against the No. 1 overall seed Duke Blue Devils on Thursday afternoon at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. Tipoff is set for 2:50 PM ET on CBS. Siena comes in at 23-11 after a strong run through the MAAC tournament, while Duke enters at 32-2 after winning both the ACC regular-season and tournament titles. This is the usual 1-vs-16 story on the surface, but bettors still have to figure out whether Duke’s control turns into a full blowout or just a comfortable advance. Siena does have some momentum. The Saints won three straight in Atlantic City to get here, and they have been pretty reliable

The NCAA Tournament opens Thursday afternoon in Oklahoma City with a dangerous first-round draw for Vanderbilt. McNeese State, the 12 seed out of the Southland, meets the 5-seed Commodores at Paycom Center, with tipoff set for 3:15 PM ET on truTV. McNeese rolls in at 28-5 after winning another conference tournament title, while Vanderbilt enters at 26-8 after an impressive SEC Tournament run that included wins over Tennessee and Florida before a loss to Arkansas in the final. The current number has Vanderbilt favored by 11.5, which tells you the market respects the Commodores, but it also leaves plenty of room for a live underdog conversation. This is a matchup that gets interesting fast once you move past the seed

The East Region opens with a classic 3-versus-14 setup as North Dakota State meets Michigan State on Thursday afternoon at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. Tip is set for 4:05 PM ET on TNT, and the market has Michigan State laying 16.5 points in a game that pits a confident Summit League champion against one of the more balanced teams in the Big Ten. North Dakota State comes in 27-7 after a strong conference run, while Michigan State enters 25-7, ranked No. 11 in the AP poll, and carrying the usual March expectations that follow Tom Izzo’s program. This is a tricky favorite spot because North Dakota State is not some accidental 14 seed. The Bison have shot the ball well

The Orlando Magic head to Spectrum Center on Thursday night for an Eastern Conference matchup against the Charlotte Hornets. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 PM, and the game will be broadcast on FDSS. Orlando comes in at 38-30 and sits atop the Southeast Division, while Charlotte enters at 35-34 and is fourth in the division. This is one of the more interesting games on the card because the standings say Orlando has had the better season, but the market is still leaning toward Charlotte at home. The Hornets are laying 4 points, with Charlotte at -176 on the moneyline and Orlando coming back at +145. The total is 226.5, which puts both the side and total in a pretty playable