For the first time since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, all the favorites won their second-round games leaving little to the imagination for the Sweet 16. Will the trend continue in the next round? Or do we get a few upsets to finally call this madness? The clean sweep put the top three seeds from each region into the Sweet 16 and the matchups are worth salivating over. The best college basketball teams in the country will be on display and four of them will advance to the Elite 8 following Thursday’s contests.
BookMaker.eu will have college basketball odds and live betting options for every game on the Thursday schedule.
College Basketball Sweet 16 Schedule for Thursday, March 28, 2019
No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 1 Gonzaga ( -7.5, 147 ), 7:09 p.m. ET (CBS)
No. 3 Purdue vs. No. 2 Tennessee ( -1.5, 146.5 ), 7:29 p.m. ET (TBS)
No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 2 Michigan ( -2, 125.5 ), 9:39 p.m. ET (CBS)
No. 12 Oregon vs. No. 1 Virginia ( -8.5, 119.5 ), 9:57 p.m. ET (TBS)
Thursday Sweet 16 Best Bets
No. 12 Oregon vs. No. 1 Virginia ( -8.5, 119.5 ), 9:57 p.m. ET (TBS)
If you go only off the seedings this is Virginia’s game. No way a No. 1 should lose to a No. 12, right? But the Ducks aren’t your ordinary 12-seed. Some lackluster play early in the year after Bol Bol was lost for the season with a foot injury put the Ducks closer to a .500 record and there was no Tournament talk. They are one of the hottest teams in the country after a stunning turnaround. The Ducks vanquished Wisconsin and UC Irvine last weekend, winning both games by an average of 18.5 points while allowing only 54 in each contest. That defensive intensity will have to continue against a Cavs team that leads the nation in fewest points allowed per game.
Getting back to that seeding thing, the Cavs may have exorcised some demons by getting this far. Remember they became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 in last year’s first round. That has been motivation all season and the Cavs beat every team not called Duke during the regular season. The loss to Florida State in the ACC tournament started another round of questions, and the Cavs early deficit to Gardner-Webb in the first round had Tony Bennett sweating. But this is a different UVA squad, one that can score while still shutting down opponents. This figures to be a defensive battle and with the spread at 8.5-points, the underdog Ducks are the best bet.
No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 1 Gonzaga ( -7.5, 147 ), 7:09 p.m. ET (CBS)
Is this the upset game we’ve all been waiting for? Not if the Zags have anything to say about it. And they have added motivation after getting booted by the Noles in this round last season. Gonzaga learned before tipoff that Killian Tillie was unavailable, and FSU took advantage by dominating inside for the 75-60 victory. Tillie will be available on Thursday, but the difference-maker is San Jose State transfer Brandon Clarke, who dropped 36 points on 15 of 18 shooting in the second-round win over Baylor.
Clarke, Tillie and Rui Hachimura form a solid inside trio for the Zags, but they will be contested by FSU’s trees. Easy buckets at the hoop will be more difficult with 7-4 Christ Koumadje and 6-10 Mfiondu Kabengele standing guard. No problem, the Zags will look to Josh Perkins and Zach Norvell to get points from the perimeter. FSU will be without veteran leader Phil Cofer, who missed the first two tournament games with an injury and left the team after the death of his father. FSU has won eight of nine leading up to this one with the only loss to Duke in the ACC tournament final. The Zags are the most complete and balanced team in the Tournament and they can beat you in a number of ways. They top the country in scoring and field goal percentage while playing a stingy brand of defense led by Clarke, who averages 8.4 rebounds and 3.1 blocks along with his 17 points per game. The line seems high at Gonzaga -7.5, but the Zags are deep and motivated, and they are a best bet to cover.
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