NCAA Sweet Sixteen Preview and Pick of Washington State vs. North Carolina
Posted: March 27, 2008
By
SBGGlobal
SBG Global Opening Line: North Carolina - 8 , Total 142.5
The overall #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, North Carolina will face Washington State in the Sweet Sixteen on Thursday night. The game will be played in Charlotte, North Carolina which gives the Tar Heels a clear advantage. The Tar Heels advanced to Thursday’s game with a 108-77 win over Arkansas last Sunday in Raleigh. The Tar Heels are the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and the No. 1 seed in the East Regional.
Washington State advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 61-41 win over Notre Dame last Saturday in Denver, Colorado. SBG Global reports that early NCAA Basketball betting has the public taking Washington State on the Road
The Tar Heels are 7-0 in five previous NCAA Tournament appearances in Charlotte and 23-1 in NCAA Tournament games played in the state of North
Carolina. North Carolina has won 13 straight games and 16 of their last 17 games overall. North Carolina won NCAA championships in 1982 and 2005 after playing early-round NCAA Tournament games in Charlotte. Carolina is playing in the NCAA Tournament for the 40th time, tied for second in NCAA history for most appearances by a program. Kentucky is first with 49 followed by Carolina and UCLA with 40. The Tar Heels have reached 16 Final Fours in their history, tied with UCLA for the most ever. Carolina is 8-0 in the NCAA Tournament’s regional semifinals when they win their second-round game by double-digits. Carolina and Washington State have never met in men’s basketball.
SBG Global Current Line: North Carolina - 8.5 , Total 141.5
Washington State is having their best season in school history. The game on Thursday features the Cougars second best defense (56.1 points allowed per game) against the second-highest scoring offense in the nation (89.9 points scored per game). "Similar to our game against Notre Dame, our transition defense is very important," Washington State head coach Tony Bennett said, "They're the most impressive team in the country in terms of getting down the floor and scoring off your misses and makes. We're playing against extreme talent and our style of play will be very important." Washington State will try and stay disciplined on Thursday just as they have all season. "It's not like we're trying to become a solid transition defensive team in the next few days while we get ready for them," Bennett said. "Hopefully, what we've done throughout the season will pay off...It's not like we're going to change our game plan completely to be successful in this game. We just have to do what we do at an elite level."
The Cougars are 26-8 this season, having tied last season’s squad for the most wins in school history. Washington State is allowing just 40.5 points per game in the two NCAA Tournament games thus far. The Cougars defeated No. 13 Winthrop, 71-40, Thursday in the first round, then followed with a 61-41 victory over No. 5 Notre Dame on Saturday. The Cougars have made five trips to the NCAA Tournament in their history and have gone 6-5. They are in the Sweet Sixteen for the first time ever. The only other time the Cougars have won two games in the tournament came in 1941 when the field consisted of eight teams.
Here are the NCAA Basketball betting stats for Thursday’s game. The Cougars are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 Thursday games. The Cougars are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 non-conference games. The Cougars are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as an underdog.
The Tar Heels are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 vs. the Pacific-10. The Tar Heels are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 NCAA Tournament games. The Tar Heels are 20-7 ATS in their last 27 games vs. a team with a winning record. The Tar Heels are 40-17-1 ATS in their last 58 non-conference games. The Tar Heels are 22-10 ATS in their last 32 games overall. The Tar Heels are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games as a favorite.
The Over is 5-2 in the Cougars last 7 games as an underdog. The Under is 30-12-1 in the Cougars last 43 non-conference games. The Under is 7-3 in the Cougars last 10 overall.
The Under is 8-1 in the Tar Heels last 9 vs. the Pacific-10. The Over is 5-1 in the Tar Heels last 6 NCAA Tournament games as a favorite. The Over is 7-2 in the Tar Heels last 9 non-conference games. The Over is 7-2-1 in the Tar Heels last 10 overall. The Over is 19-7-1 in the Tar Heels last 27 games as a favorite. The Over is 11-5 in the Tar Heels last 16 Thursday games.
Pick: Over 142 4 units ... For more College Basketball discussion please visit the Basketball Betting forum and for past and upcoming College Basketball games visit our Basketball Picks Page.
