Mark Zinno offers top bets for the 2026 men’s NCAA basketball tournament round of 64. He targets key games like High Point versus Wisconsin and Houston against Idaho. These picks suit the ESPN Men’s Tournament Challenge Eliminator game. Fans seek edges now in March Madness action.

High Point faces Wisconsin at 1:50 p.m. ET as a 12-seed versus a 5-seed. Zinno backs High Point plus 10.5 points at minus 115 odds from DraftKings. The Panthers score over 90 points per game on average. They hold a 14-game winning streak, the longest active in the nation. Their fast pace and sharp passes create easy baskets. They limit foes to 31.9 percent from three-point range. High Point forces turnovers at a top-five national rate.

Wisconsin struggles on defense among top Big Ten teams. The Badgers rank average in stopping effective field goals and threes. They rely heavily on outside shots. High Point exploits these flaws well. Zinno sees this as a classic 12-over-5 upset chance. He plays the bet down to plus 9.5 points.

Later, Houston meets Idaho around 10:10 p.m. ET as a 2-seed over a 15-seed. Zinno picks the first half over 63.5 points at minus 105 odds. Houston must score under 40 points. Idaho needs fewer than 25. College games rarely see such low outputs. Houston’s defense may limit Idaho. Yet holding them to 23 or less proves tough.

Idaho shoots many threes. A few makes push them past 25 in 20 minutes. Numbers favor the over if one team performs normally. Zinno eyes these bets for value in early rounds. Players build Eliminator brackets with smart choices like these. Tournament chaos starts now. Bettors gain from matchup edges.