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7-Unit Play. #552 Take Middle Tennessee (-6) over Vermont (8 p.m., Tuesday, March 13)
Middle Tennessee effectively took themselves out of the NCAA Tournament conversation when they lost in the quarterfinals of the C-USA Tournament to a bad Southern Miss team. Had it been a loss a round or two deeper, perhaps a different story. But the loss also has allowed this team the opportunity to vent and get it out of their system. They didn't lose down the wire in the title game which would have definitely crushed this team by narrowly missing out on the Big Dance. This is a veteran team. Its top three players are all seniors who will be playing for something. The Blue Raiders won't throw this opportunity away. They have the chance to really win the NIT, and they'll be motivated to do so as a mid-major that doesn't take games for granted. Middle Tennessee has played more difficult games all season than has Vermont coming from the America East. They lost their conference tournament title game via a buzzer beater. Now that's a crushing blow that can definitely deflate a team in a game like this and leave them flat. Couple that with Vermont having to fly halfway across the country for this game just a few days later. Middle Tennessee will relish this opportunity at home to make some noise in March, regardless if its a consolation tournament. This is the first step to getting to New York City. Blue Raiders by double digits at home.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL --- NCAA Tournament, Play-in Round.
TUESDAY, MARCH 13
NCAA PLAY-IN ROUND (Dayton, OH)
6:40 pm Radford over LIU-Brooklyn by 8 The Radford team plays at 62.7 possessions per game. Only Virginia eats the ball more. But part of that ‘slow’ pace is playing tenacious half-court defense that forces opponents to be patient and work hard for open looks. If LIU-Brooklyn head coach Derek Kellogg was the kind of guy who could get that out of his team, then he’d still be coaching at UMass, where they fired him after last season. His teams want to run around and shoot 3s or attack the rim. ASAP. When they can’t, because Radford is actually guarding them, the players’ games go down the drain. RADFORD, 67-59.
9:10 pm St. Bonaventure over UCLA by 1 This assumes that Courtney Stockard will be playing for St. Bonaventure. He is a game-time decision coming off a hamstring injury that forced him to miss the A-10 Semifinals loss to Davidson. Leanin’ the Bonnies’ experienced backcourt of Jaylen Adams and Matt Mobley against less-experienced opposite talent for UCLA. The height of Thomas Welsh could pose a problem for the underdog, but Welsh just hasn’t been the kind of player that takes over games for UCLA. ST. BONAVENTURE, 73-72.
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