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The 2022 NCAA Tournament odds make it appear that many of Friday's games will be predictable, but as March Madness has repeatedly shown, anything is possible. No. 2 seeds Duke, Villanova and Auburn all are in action, along with third-seeded Texas Tech, Purdue and Wisconsin. All but the Badgers are favored by at least 15 points in Caesars Sportsbook's latest 2022 NCAA Tournament odds. No. 1 Arizona plays Wright State (+21.5), but there should be plenty of close games. The Ohio State vs. Loyola-Chicago matchup is listed as a pick'em at Caesars, and four other spreads are at two points or fewer.

No matter the college basketball odds, there will be upsets, and if you do your homework, you can land some big returns. If you combine these picks in a 2022 NCAA Tournament parlay, the payout can really be significant. Before locking in any of your 2022 NCAA Tournament picks or building any parlays for Friday's games, you need to see who SportsLine's college basketball expert Matt Severance is backing.

A well-connected writer and handicapper who has worked in the industry since 2005, Severance is on a stunning run: He is on a blistering 89-64-4 his last 157 college basketball picks against the spread, returning $1,850 to $100 bettors during that span. Anyone who has followed him is way up.

Now, Severance has pored over the entire bracket from every angle and come up with his best bets for Friday's games. Parlaying these three 2022 NCAA Tournament picks would pay almost 6-1. Head to SportsLine now to see his March Madness picks. 

Top NCAA Tournament picks for Friday 

Among the top plays Severance is backing for Friday: The USC Trojans cover as 1.5-point favorites against the Miami Hurricanes. This game is a mismatch because of the huge lineup the Trojans send out. They have four starters at least 6-foot-9, while Miami uses four guards in its starting lineup. Miami has one regular contributor who is 6-10, but he isn't athletic enough to handle USC's size. The Trojans should dominate the boards and get plenty of second chances to pour on the points. USC is ninth in the nation in rebounding at 40.2 per game.   

The Hurricanes, meanwhile, get just 30.5 (33rd in Division I), and 6-10 Sam Waardenburg gets only 4.2 (third on the team). Isaiah Mobley is also 6-10, and he was second in the Pac-12 in rebounds (8.5). Chevez Goodwin (6.5 rebounds), Drew Peterson (6.2) and Max Agbonkpolo (3.4) are all 6-9. USC isn't a great shooting team, but it is 74th in field-goal percentage (45.4) and 76th in 3-point shooting (35.4). Miami is 330th in opponent field-goal percentage (46.3) and 288th against the three (35.4). Plus, USC is 7-1 ATS in its past eight NCAA Tournament games.

How to make NCAA Tournament predictions, parlays for Friday

Severance has locked in two other spread picks he loves, backing a pair of teams who are tested after tough roads through two of the nation's top conferences. You really need to see these picks before locking in any 2022 NCAA Tournament picks of your own. You can see his best bets only at SportsLine.

Which college basketball teams should you target in a three-way parlay for Friday's NCAA Tournament First Round matchups? And which battle-tested teams are must-backs? Visit SportsLine now to see the top three-way NCAA Tournament parlay for Friday, all from the expert who's an outstanding 89-64-4 his last 157 college basketball spread picks, and find out.