College basketball betting: Dalen Cuff's bets to make for Champ Week - ESPN

The best time of the year has arrived… well, almost.

I prefer the madness of the NCAA tournament where everything is on the line every time out. But Champ Week has so many great matchups, more than 12 hours per day, and hardware is on the line — also phenomenal.

Picking winners here is not easy. Going chalk across the board is not smart money. So let's rip through the big six leagues and find some of my favorite spots to cash a few winners.

Odds courtesy of ESPN BET

Complete your bracket by selecting the winner for each game of the 2024 men's NCAA tournament. Play Men's Tournament Challenge

Bubble teams abound in the ACC with Virginia, Wake Forest, Pitt and maybe even Syracuse battling for their tournament lives. There aren't many Quad 1 wins to improve your résumé in this league, and I think despite the desperation, Duke and North Carolina +190 are clearly the class of the league. Despite beating Duke twice this season and winning the title outright, the Tar Heels are second choice to the Blue Devils. The old adage of beating a team three times in a season will be in play here, but I don't subscribe to that theory. The Heels are the more veteran, tough and physical team. Duke has yet to prove it can play through and succeed in a physical game. Give me the Heels.

Well, about not taking the favorites… there are exceptions. There is no team I believe is more complete than UConn. It can beat you in so many ways in so many different types of games. The Huskies have finally been healthy for a stretch and are just getting better. There's no value here, so I'm laying up on this league. That said, Creighton +300 would be the play otherwise. As the No. 2 seed, I like its path with a likely matchup against Providence in the