The third-ever assembly between Florida Atlantic and San Diego State may hardly have larger stakes. Each applications are within the Remaining 4 for the primary time and the winner advances to the nationwide championship recreation Monday.
The No. 9 Owls (35–3) and No. 5 Aztecs (31–6) have each traveled troublesome paths to reach at this level. FAU defeated No. 8 Memphis within the Spherical of 64, 66-65, and saved dancing with a 78-70 victory over No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson within the Spherical of 32. Within the second weekend of the match, coach Dusty Might’s crew shocked No. 4 Tennessee, 62-55, within the Candy 16 after which received previous No. 3 Kansas State, 79-76, within the Elite Eight.
As for San Diego State’s run, which was fueled by its ferocious protection, a 63-57 win over No. 12 Charleston kicked issues off. Then got here a 75-52 conquer No. 13 Furman within the subsequent spherical to arrange a gathering with the highest general seed, Alabama. The Aztecs upended the Crimson Tide, 71-64, and eked out a 57-56 victory over No. 6 Creighton.
And now, right here they're, two unlikely representatives in Houston that emerged from the East and South areas, respectively. San Diego State is a slight favourite at SI Sportsbook, however Florida Atlantic has already pulled off three upsets within the match. What’s yet another?
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March Insanity Odds: No. 9 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 5 San Diego State
Time: 6:09 p.m. ET | CBSUnfold: Florida Atlantic +1.5 (-105) | San Diego State -1.5 (-125)Moneyline: FAU (+110) | SDSU (-138)Over/Underneath: 131.5 – Over (-118) | Underneath (-110)
Florida Atlantic vs. San Diego State Greatest Guess: Underneath 131.5 (-118)
The Owls are among the many prime 30 groups nationally in each adjusted offense (24) and protection (30). They’ve gained shootouts, like their recreation towards the Wildcats, and grind-it-out video games, resembling their win versus the Volunteers. FAU is a powerful three-point capturing crew that will get after it on the glass, out-rebounding its opponents by a mean of six boards per recreation, and it doubled up Kansas State in that division, 44-22. The crew additionally shoots higher than 37% from deep and makes 9.6 three-pointers per recreation.
The engine of the crew thus far in March has been Johnell Davis, who’s averaging 17.3 factors, 7.8 rebounds and three.2 assists per recreation within the match. He’s led the crew in scoring and assists twice and rebounds as soon as thus far. Alijah Martin, the crew’s second-leading scorer behind Davis on the yr, scored 17 within the Elite Eight and middle Vladislav Goldin additionally had his finest recreation of the match final day out as he racked up 14 factors and 13 rebounds. Opponents additionally should account for the Owls’ second unit, as they've the second-highest scoring bench within the nation (33.2 factors per recreation).
The Aztecs are all about their protection, which is available in at No. 4 within the nation. Their 74th-ranked offense is the bottom remaining unit within the tourney, although it had sufficient juice to get previous Alabama and Creighton. A distinct participant has led the crew in scoring in every recreation thus far: Matt Bradley with 17, then Micah Parrish’s 16 off the bench. Darrion Trammel’s 21 received the job finished towards the Tide and Lamont Butler’s 18 factors led the crew towards the Blue Jays.
SDSU isn’t a crew that knocks down all that many three-pointers, however its protection does properly to restrict exterior alternatives in flip. Opponents shoot simply 27.9% from exterior towards this unit on the yr, the third-lowest proportion in DI. And although San Diego State doesn’t have as sturdy a bonus on the glass as FAU, it has out-rebounded opponents by 4.5 boards on common this season.
So, which approach must you lean on this matchup? I’m inclined to take the Owls with the factors as added insurance coverage, however the very best play could be the beneath.
When Florida Atlantic performed Tennessee, a crew with the same defensive pedigree, the beneath of 129 cashed simply. The beneath additionally hit within the Memphis recreation, which had a a lot larger whole however nonetheless would have gone beneath this mark.
Then there’s the Aztecs, who've seen the beneath hit of their final 12 video games. Their 266th-ranked tempo slows the sport down and their suffocating protection contributes to their season-long pattern of low-scoring video games. The beneath is 22–14 on the yr for SDSU.
NCAA Event Betting FileFirst 4: 3–1Round of 64: 3–3Sweet 16: 2–2Elite Eight: 2–0Overall: 10–6
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