Houston, the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region, is on top of the odds boards to win the national championship, followed by the top overall seed Alabama.

Led by perhaps the nation’s best player, 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey, Purdue enters the NCAA Tournament as the East Region’s No. 1 seed.

The Boilermakers won the Big Ten tournament championship by beating Penn State, 67-65, on Sunday. It’s the first time since 1996 that Purdue is a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance.

Edey, the odds-on favorite to win player of the year, is tied for seventh in the nation in scoring with 22.1 points per game and is third with 12.8 rebounds per contest. In the Big Ten tournament, Edey averaged 26 points.

Purdue (29-5) will open the NCAA Tournament on Friday in Columbus, Ohio, against the winner of the First Four game between 16 seeds Texas Southern and Fairleigh Dickinson.

The Boilermakers are +1000 to win the national championship, according to DraftKings, but have one of the toughest roads to the Final Four.

At the bottom of the bracket is Big East tournament champion and the East’s No. 2 seed Marquette (28-6). The Golden Eagles are +2500 to win the NCAA title. The region’s third seed is Kansas State (23-9), which sits at 45-1 (+4500) odds to win it all, while No. 4-seeded Tennessee (23-10) is +2500 odds.

FrontPageBets breaks down what you need to know about the East Region.

Most interesting first-round matchup

No. 8 Memphis (26-8) vs. No. 9 Florida Atlantic (31-3), Friday

Memphis enters the NCAA Tournament on a heater, beating No. 1 Houston in the American Athletic Conference title game late Sunday afternoon, 75-65.

The Tigers are 26th in the nation in scoring, averaging 79.9 point per game and led by senior guard Kendric Davis, who is 10th in the nation in scoring at 21.8 points per game. Davis also is 17th in the Division I with 5.7 assists per game.

Memphis averaged 83.3 points in the AAC tourney, including a 40-point win over Tulane, 94-54, in Saturday’s semifinal.

Florida Atlantic is tied with Houston and the College of Charleston for best record in the NCAA Tournament. The Owls won the Conference USA tournament title and head to the Big Dance for just the second time in school history.

The teams will meet on Friday in Columbus, Ohio.

Team to watch: Oral Roberts

For the second time in three seasons, Oral Roberts (30-4) won the Summit League title – and it wasn’t even close.

The Golden Eagles beat North Dakota State by 34 points, 92-58, in the conference championship game and punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament, where they will face No. 5 Duke (26-8) in the first round Thursday in Orlando, Fla.

Led by Summit League player of the year senior guard Max Abmas, who is averaging 22.2 points per game, which is sixth-best in the nation, Oral Roberts’ offense can flat light up the scoreboard. The Golden Eagles are the nation’s third-highest scoring offense, averaging 84.2 points per game.

They also have one of the nation’s top shot-blockers in 7-foot-5 senior forward Connor Vanover, who is No. 2 in the country this year with 109 blocks.

Oral Roberts set a program record this season for wins with 30 and are the only team in the nation to go undefeated in conference play, meaning its won 17 games in a row – which is the nation’s longest winning streak.

Facing perennial powerhouse Duke in the opening game of the NCAAs is no easy task, but don’t expect this Oral Roberts team to flinch.

Final Four pick

Purdue might be the weakest No. 1 seed in the field. And Marquette might be the strongest second seed.

Call it the Shaka Smart factor.

Under the former VCU and Texas coach, who took the mid-major Rams to the Final Four in 2011, Smart led Marquette to the Big East Conference Tournament championship on Saturday night, beating Xavier, 65-51.

It was the Golden Eagles’ first league tournament title in 26 years since they won the Conference USA championship in 1997. Marquette joined the Big East in 2005.

Marquette is on a nine-game winning streak and tied a 52-year-old school record or wins at 28.

The Golden Eagles do it with offense, as they’re 14th in the country in points per game, averaging 81 a contest.

Smart, in just his second season with the Golden Eagles, has now led 10 different teams to the NCAA Tournament. In 12 seasons at VCU, he led the Rams to five NCAA Tournament berths, including that historic Final Four run. While at Texas, Smart’s Longhorns made three trips to the Big Dance. Last season, Marquette also got into the Round of 64, before losing to eventual Final Four team UNC in the first round.

But that’s the thing, Smart’s teams don’t often last long in the Big Dance.

Purdue has been no less than a 5 seed in its last six NCAA Tournament appearances and has won nine games over that stretch, including an Elite Eight showing in 2019.

In perhaps the toughest region to pick, the Final Four representative from the East could be as high as a No. 6 seed (Kentucky). It’s just that wide open.

But in the end, it comes down to the nation’s best player.

The pick: Purdue

Gambling problem? There isΒ help. Call 1-800-522-4700 or visit theΒ National Council on Problem GamblingΒ for help.

Become a #ThisIsTucson member! Your contribution helps our team bring you stories that keep you connected to the community. Become a member today.

Mike Szvetitz is the General Manager and Content Director for FrontPageBets.com. Szvetitz is a 23-year veteran reporter and editor, including serving 17 years as a sports editor in Florida, Alabama and Virginia, covering everything from preps to pros. His "View From The Lazy Boy" column won multiple state and national awards. He can be reached at mszvetitz@timesdispatch.com.