College Basketball Bracket Contest | College Basketball Championship | College Hoops Contest | College Basketball Odds | College Finals Contest | Basketball Finals

Many sports use a tournament format to decide their champion, including professional sports. The "Final Four" of college basketball refers to the semifinal round of the Division I Men's or Women's Basketball Tournament. In this round, there are four teams left, and two games are played to determine which two teams will head to the finals.

Making it to the College Finals means that a team won its first four tournament games, and it only has to win two more to be the national champions. A team that reaches this point in the tournament is already envisioning the hanging of a National Championship banner from the rafters of its home arena, which is a common tradition.

As mentioned before, the basketball finals are played in April, but they are still full of the madness syndrome. Typically, the men's semifinal games are played on the first Saturday in April, and the women's are played on the first Sunday. The winners of those games move on to face each other in their respective championship games, which are played on the subsequent Monday.

With so many games (and so many betting options) available, it's easy for the casual sports bettor to become overwhelmed and lose focus on the task at handwinning. And although adhering to the following ten tips will not guarantee that you'll be retiring this April, they'll certainly put you on the right track toward not going away mad after your madness maneuvers.

• Tip #1 - Bet what you know
• Tip #2 - Be a sponge for info
• Tip #3 - Become an expert
• Tip #4 - Think about your own line before you see the Vegas Line
• Tip #5 - Be confident in the underdogs of your selection