UMBC vs. Howard Dunkel Predictions & Vegas Odds - First Four

The UMBC Retrievers (24-8) and the Howard Bison (23-10) will play on Tuesday with a spot in the Round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament bracket up for grabs. UMBC has been named a 1.5-point favorite for this First Four matchup, which tips off at 6:40 p.m. ET, live on truTV. The over/under for the matchup is set at 139.5.

UMBC came out on top in its most recent outing 74-59 against Vermont on Saturday. DJ Armstrong scored a team-leading 33 points for UMBC in the win. Howard enters this contest on the heels of a 70-63 victory against North Carolina Central on Saturday. Ose Okokie's team-high 14 points paced Howard in the win.

UMBC vs. Howard Odds and Game Time

• When: Tuesday, March 17, 2026 at 6:40 p.m. ET
• Where: UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio
• Spread favorite: UMBC -1.5
• Moneyline favorite: UMBC -122
• Moneyline underdog: Howard -100
• Over/Under: 139.5 points

How to watch UMBC vs. Howard

• TV Channel: truTV
• Check out the rest of our Dunkel Index NCAA Basketball Picks!

Betting the Over/Under: UMBC vs. Howard

• This season, UMBC's games have hit the over on this game's 139.5-point over/under 18 times.
• There have been 20 Howard games that ended with a combined score over 139.5 points this season.
• Together, the two teams combine for 153.7 points per game, 14.2 points more than the point total of 139.5 for this contest.
• These two teams give up a combined 134.8 points per game, 4.7 less than this contest's over/under.
• UMBC has seen a 143.2 average over/under in its games this season, 3.7 points more than the over/under in this matchup.
• Howard's games have an average over/under of 145.2 points this season, 5.7 more points than the over/under for this contest.

Betting the Spread: UMBC vs. Howard

• In UMBC's 30 games this year, it has 19 wins against the spread.
• The Retrievers have an against the spread record of 15-7 in their 22 games as a favorite of 1.5 points or more so far this season.
• Howard has 22 wins against the spread in 30 games this season.
• So far this year, the Bison have been installed as underdogs by a 1.5-point margin or more 10 times and are 8-2 ATS in those contests.
• Howard is 8-4 overall, and 9-3 against the spread, at home.
• This season, as a 1.5-point underdog or more at home, Howard is 8-2 ATS.
• On the road, UMBC is 10-5 against the spread, and 9-6 overall.
• Away from home, as 1.5-point favorites or more, UMBC is 7-2 ATS.

Betting the Moneyline: UMBC vs. Howard

• UMBC has entered the game as moneyline favorites 21 times this season and won 19, or 90.5%, of those games.
• The Retrievers are 19-1 this season when entering a game favored by -122 or more on the moneyline.
• Bookmakers have implied with the moneyline set for this matchup that UMBC has a 55% chance to win.
• Howard has been a moneyline underdog in nine games this season and has come away with the win five times (55.6%) in those contests.
• This season, the Bison have come away with a win five times in nine chances when named as an underdog of at least -100 or worse on the moneyline.
• The moneyline set for this matchup implies Howard has a 50% chance of walking away with the win.