Whether your NCAA Tournament first-round viewing featured chips-and-dip or wings or pizza, it came with a heaping, unseemly, nasty dose of chalk.

Favorites were 19-13 against the spread (59.4 percent).

Higher seeds were 25-7 straight up, with two of the losses coming in the No. 8-9 game.

The average victory margin of 16.7 points was the highest ever, according to StatsPerform.

Ten games were decided by at least 25 points, another record.

And if that’s not enough evidence of low drama, take note: This was the first time since 2017, and only the sixth instance since the brackets took their current shape in 1985, that the top four seeds in each region advanced to the second round.

Our once-every-seven-years event picked this spring to emerge from its slumber.

Which means the round of 32 could be epic. Or not.

It’s entirely possible that the top-heavy trend we experienced Thursday and Friday will continue through the weekend and into the regionals.

But a few close games would be nice.

To the Hotline’s picks for the second round …

First round: 7-2
Tournament total: 7-2
Five-star special: 1-0

All picks against the spread.
Lines taken from vegasinsider.com

McNeese State (+6.5) over Purdue (in Providence)
Tipoff: Saturday at 9:10 a.m on CBS
Comment: The Cowboys led by double digits for most of their first-round upset of Clemson, then learned their coach, Will Wade, is headed to NC State following the season. For now, Wade and his Southland Conference champions have another favorite to topple.

Creighton (+9.5) over Auburn (in Lexington)
Tipoff: Saturday at 4:10 p.m. on TBS/truTV
Comment: We have seen nothing from the top-seeded Tigers in recent weeks to indicate they are ready for a run to the Final Four and everything from the Bluejays, who have won five of their past six, to suggest they will push Auburn to the brink. The matchup features two of the best big men in the country in Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner and Auburn’s Johni Broome.

Brigham Young (+1.5) over Wisconsin (in Denver)
Tipoff: Saturday at 4:45 p.m. on CBS
Comment: An easy-on-the-eyes matchup of two well-coached teams with crisp, fluid offenses. We like the Cougars, who have two high-end playmakers in Richie Saunders and Egor Demin, whereas the Badgers have just one (John Tonje).

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Gonzaga (+4.5) over Houston (in Wichita)
Tipoff: Saturday at 5:40 p.m. on TNT
Comment: The marked disparity in seeds between the No. 1 Cougars and the No. 8 Bulldogs matters less than the differences in skill, strategy and experience, which are minimal. (Notably, the opening line was Gonzaga +5.5.) If you can only watch one game this weekend, make it this one. It could be another March epic for the Zags.

Iowa State (-5.5) over Mississippi (in Milwaukee)
Tipoff: Sunday at 4:45 p.m. on truTV
Comment: The Cyclones looked like the team we expected to see all season in their first-round win despite the absence of injured guard Keshon Gilbert — and that team is a high-level Final Four contender. Ole Miss struggled to put away North Carolina and doesn’t have enough offense to advance.

Alabama (-5.5) over Saint Mary’s (in Cleveland)
Tipoff: Sunday at 3:10 p.m. on TNT
Comment: A more intriguing contrast in pace isn’t possible. Alabama is No. 1 nationally in adjusted tempo while the Gaels are 360th. And the Crimson Tide is No. 4 in offensive efficiency while the Gaels are No. 7 in defense. In the tournament, offense wins.

Arizona (-4.5) over Oregon (in Seattle)
Tipoff: Sunday at 6:40 p.m. on TBS
Comment: Dana Altman’s standard tactical advantage over his counterparts in the NCAAs doesn’t exist against Arizona, which knows the Ducks well from so many Pac-12 matchups in recent years. This will be all about shot-making in the final four minutes.

Straight-up winners: McNeese State, Auburn, BYU, Gonzaga, Iowa State, Alabama and Arizona

Five-star special: Creighton. The Bluejays were just four spots below Auburn in the AP preseason poll for a reason. What was true in early November holds in late March: The difference in quality is negligible.

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