Sweet 16
Here we go.
Cornell (+8.5) “@” Kentucky
So apparently whoever the higher seed is, is labeled the home team. This Cornell line is interesting. I actually think it is very accurate, but what makes me like Cornell here is that I feel they have a much higher chance of winning than most 8 to 9 point underdogs. For instance, Purdue is an eight point underdog and I don’t think they have a prayer of beating Duke.
Butler (+6) “@” Syracuse
I think this line is a bit low, it is a continuation of what seems like a season-long trend of over-valuing Butler and under-valuing Syracuse. I would personally have this at a whisker under double digits.
Xavier “@” Kansas State (under 154)
I am basing this entirely on a four second blurb I saw the other day on one of the networks where a commentator said Kansas St defense was awesome but he wasn’t sure where they were going to get points from in subsequent rounds. That, combined with a pretty hefty number of 154 makes me like the under. That is my entire reasoning.
Northern Iowa (+1) “@” Michigan St
I have Michigan St in the final four of my brackets so they damn well better beat these guys. I know Lucas is out, but the Mich St offense was scoring (when they could shoot the ball) just fine the other day without him. The thing that makes me nervous is that in the final minutes of the Maryland game, Maryland would trap and Mich St had no answers. In fact I watched a replay of the game and if you watch, Maryland takes the trap off when they go ahead by one with like 38 seconds to go. I know hindsight is easy, but they should NEVER have taken the full-court pressure off. Mich St would have been toast. Instead, the Spartans go down and score on their next two possessions with no trap to beat. With that being said, this is why they pay Tom Izzo the big bucks. It’s up to him to prepare a makeshift game plan. A team without a point guard is a shell of itself (see Texas), but Izzo is one of a very select group of coaches who I feel can figure something out.
Purdue (+8) “@” Duke
This game could be an absolute blowout in my opinion. If Duke is suspect, Purdue is that to the nth degree with Hummel out. This game continues Duke’s stroll.
