The COVID-19 pandemic reached outbreak proportions in America last March just days before college basketball fans in many states would have had their first opportunity to wager on the NCAA March Madness men’s basketball tournament.
But barring any stunning and disturbing developments, the 68-team field will be announced on March 14 and a winner of the all-Indianapolis event will be crowned on April 5.
And with this tournament will come more than a speck of confusion in eight U.S. jurisdictions, where fans will discover that they can wager on March Madness, alright — just not on their favorite schools within their state borders.
The count of such schools, after a review by US Bets, is 53 colleges and universities that play Division I ball — but where their alumni in some cases will be crossing state lines if they prefer to wager legally.
As it happens, the affected jurisdictions collectively have a remarkably thin field of title contenders.