The NCAA Tournament Final Four 2024 features the defending champion, UConn; a team making its national semifinals debut, Alabama; and a pair of squads who are making their first Final Four appearances since the early 1980s, Purdue and NC State. State Farm Arena in Phoenix will host the festivities on Saturday. The 2024 NCAA Tournament Final Four schedule begins with Purdue vs. NC State (+9) at 6:09 p.m. ET, followed by UConn vs. Alabama (+11.5) at 8:49 p.m. ET.
NC State has been the 2024 March Madness Cinderella, as the 11th-seeded Wolfpack are tied for the lowest-seeded team to make the Final Four. The previous five 11-seeds all lost in this round, which many will keep in mind when making 2024 NCAA Tournament picks or Final Four parlays. What 2024 March Madness predictions should pique your interest for NC State vs. Purdue and Alabama vs. UConn? Before locking in any NCAA Tournament Final Four picks 2024 or college basketball parlays, be sure to check out what the SportsLine Projection Model has to say.
The model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. It entered the Sweet 16 round of the 2024 NCAA tournament on a 152-109 roll on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to last season, returning more than $1,800 for $100 players. It also has a strong 32-21 (+890) record on top-rated spread picks this season, and it called 13 Sweet 16 teams this year. Anyone following has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has crunched the numbers for Saturday's NCAA Tournament Final Four 2024, revealing against-the-spread and over-under picks for both games. A successful parlay of these picks would pay over 13-1. You can only see its 2024 NCAA Tournament picks at SportsLine.
Top 2024 NCAA Tournament Final Four predictions, March Madness picks
The model is backing Over 146 total points in NC State vs. Purdue. These teams last met just two seasons ago and many holdovers remain, including both coaches and Zach Edey. That contest had a similar over-under of 144.5, and the teams easily surpassed it with 154 total points. This season, both teams have tended to engage in high-scoring games when matched up with other potent offenses, which is the case in this contest. Both teams average over 76 points per game and the Over is a combined 18-10 when these squads play opponents averaging over 72.
Both teams have defensive deficiencies that should allow the offenses to light up the scoreboard. Only one ACC team committed more fouls than NC State, which is a poor omen facing a Purdue team that ranks 10th nationally in made free throws per game. Meanwhile, the Boilermakers rank 349th out of 362 Division I schools in turnovers forced per game. That means extra possessions for the Wolfpack and more touches for DJ Burns, the first player in 30 years to enter the Final Four averaging at least 18.3 points on at least 67.4% shooting. With the respective offenses ahead of the defenses, the model has the Over hitting in over 60% of simulations. Get the rest of the parlay here.
How to make 2024 March Madness Final Four picks, parlays
The model also locked in spread and total picks for both games, with one team covering in over 60% of simulations. Head to SportsLine to see its NCAA Tournament 2024 picks.
Which college basketball picks should you target in a 13-1 parlay for Saturday's Final Four games? And which team covers in over 60% of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see the top 2024 NCAA Tournament parlay for the Final Four, all from the model that has generated a profit of over $1,800 on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread.
