'Easiest upset pick ever': NCAA Tournament experts pick South Dakota State over Providence

The South Dakota State Jackrabbits are one of the Cinderellas of the NCAA Tournament — at least before any games are played.

The SDSU men are one of the trendy upset picks among college basketball fans filling in their brackets and from experts across the country. On Yahoo's bracket challenge, 24 percent of users are picking No. 13 SDSU to beat No. 4 Providence College, which is the highest of any No. 13 seed.

Many national experts are also picking the Jacks. Kyle Boone of CBS Sports says the game is "a brutal matchup" for Providence, USAToday calls SDSU "one of the dark-horse teams of the tournament" and Roger Sherman of The Ringer said it's the "easiest upset pick ever."

SDSU men: With a 13 seed in the NCAA tournament, Jacks to face Providence College

Providence is listed as 2.5-point favorites on average on most gambling website, a small margin of victory for a No. 4 seed.

What experts are saying about South Dakota State vs. Providence College

Joe Lunardi, ESPN: "South Dakota State's first opponent will likely be favored to win. But the opposing coach will hate how it happened. The Jackrabbits have the profile of a team that can spoil dreams. They have averaged 86.7 PPG, second in the country to Gonzaga."

Kyle Boone, CBS Sports: "... I am telling you that this is an upset I've got in every one of my brackets. South Dakota State is 30-4 on the season and enters the tournament having won its last 21 games dating all the way back to mid-December. This is a brutal matchup for the Friars, so if you're going to take a big upset by seeding, this is the one in the Midwest I've circled in sharpie."

Matt Norlander, CBSSports: "Eric Henderson might be bound for a bigger job soon, as he's 68-21 through three seasons with the Jackrabbits. It's won 21 in a row, the longest winning streak in the country. Never until now had a Summit League team won 30 games in a season. ... You will not want to miss their first round game.

Rodger Sherman, TheRinger.com: "This feels more like an 8-9 matchup than a 4-13. In 2021, the average spread for a 4-13 matchup was 9.5 points; Providence is listed as just a 2.5-point favorite over South Dakota State. If the Jackrabbits win, it’d barely count as an upset in Vegas—but it would still look nice on your bracket, thanks to a dramatic misseeding by the selection committee."

More: Providence enjoying best season in years as they prepare for South Dakota State in NCAA Tournament

Scott Gleeson, USAToday: "The Jackrabbits (30-4) have a dynamic offense that will be difficult to stop. ... This team is red-hot and romped through the Summit League, with its last loss coming in mid-December."

Eddie Timanus, USAToday: "No. 13 seed South Dakota State is one of just three teams to enter the tournament with 30 wins. Yes, the Jackrabbits play in the Summit League, not quite the same level of competition Arizona faced while posting its 31-3 record. But the Jackrabbits made a clean sweep of their conference – regular season and tournament – and take a 21-game winning streak into their round-of-64 matchup with No. 4 Providence."

Ryan Fagan, Sporting News: "The 13-v-4 matchup should be a lot of fun; South Dakota State hasn’t lost since Dec. 15, rolling up an 18-0 record in Summit League competition, and Providence will have its hands full and seems to play a close game every time out."

Tanner McGrath, ActionNetwork.com: "While South Dakota State is a great upset pick, I’m already worried about the Jackrabbits as a trendy dog. I’ve seen this movie too many times before, and I could see South Dakota State laying an egg with expectations on the line."

More: NCAA Tournament bracket tips: Everything you need to dominate your 2022 March Madness pool

Kerry Miller, BleacherReport.com: "One of my favorite stats to bring up on occasion is that South Dakota State could miss its next 80 three-point attempts and would still rank No. 1 in three-point percentage. The Jackrabbits are sitting at 44.9 percent on the season. They're also at 52.5 percent from the field, which makes them and Gonzaga (52.7) the only teams above 50. Their defense is bad. Like, really bad. Terrible, if we're being honest. But Providence does not have a prolific offense. So give me the Jacks."

Neil Greenberg, Washington Post: "After adjusting for strength of schedule, South Dakota State has the 12th best offensive efficiency in the nation, making it a threat against any defense."

Kyle Irving, Sporting News: "Even though the Jackrabbits are on fire, I like Providence's experienced upperclassmen roster, led by Big East Coach of the Year Ed Cooley, to hold off a team hungry for an upset."

Andy Wittry, NCAA.com: South Dakota State leads the country in 3-point percentage (44.2 percent) and effective field goal percentage (59.7 percent), so a performance that could be labeled as the Jackrabbits "getting hot" might in fact just be their standard.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: March Madness: NCAA basketball experts pick SDSU vs. Providence