One Massachusetts College For March Madness Betting: Holy Cross WBB

This is the first March Madness where Massachusetts residents can legally bet on the basketball action.

And those gamblers will have the option to bet on one in-state college team:

Holy Cross in the women’s NCAA Tournament.

The second-seeded Crusaders beat No. 1 seed Boston University 66-61 in the Patriot League tournament title game on Sunday, awarding Holy Cross the league’s automatic March Madness berth. BU doesn’t have a strong enough resume for an at-large bid and will likely play in the WNIT.

March Madness betting allowed in Massachusetts

Massachusetts sports betting law restricts wagering on college sports involving in-state college teams. The lone exception is when those colleges are part of tournaments with four or more teams.

Translation: March Madness betting is fair game for Massachusetts colleges.

What NCAA Tournament seed will Holy Cross get?

Holy Cross (24-8) got the 15-seed in the College Park, Maryland, region, and will play No. 2 Maryland in the first round. If the Crusaders can upset the Terps, they’ll play either No. 7 Arizona or No. 10 West Virginia in the second round for a shot at the Sweet 16.

Lines aren’t out yet, but the Crusaders will have steep March Madness betting odds against Maryland.

This marks the first NCAA Tournament for Holy Cross since 2007 and the program’s 13th all-time berth. It has made it past the first round just once, when it beat Maryland 81-74 in overtime as an 11-seed in the 1991 NCAA Tournament.

Holy Cross, located in Worcester, about 45 miles west of Boston, went 1-1 against BU during the regular season and finished second to the Terriers in the Patriot League standings. The Crusaders beat BU 57-53 on March 1 and lost 66-59 on Feb. 15.

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