Day 2 of the Sweet 16 will be a lot of fun. We have some rivalries and some home crowd atmospheres that will be on display Friday night. There is nothing quite like Michigan State and Michigan fans in the same building or Kentucky vs Tennessee on the same court in March Madness. Here is SGPN’s favorite College Basketball picks for today, March 28th.
College Basketball Picks March 28th – March Madness
7:09 ET: Ole Miss vs Michigan State (-3.5/143.5)
Ole Miss’ Chris Beard is one heck of a ball coach. This past weekend the Rebels were an underdog of 1.5 points against North Carolina and won by seven. Mississippi was also a 5-point dog to Iowa State in the second round where the Rebs won by 13. Plus Beard already has an upset win, 71-61 over Tom Izzo and Michigan State, back in the 2019 NCAA Tournament when he was a 2-point underdog with Texas Tech.
During the first weekend of the tournament Sean Pedulla had two of his best games this season. The Senior Virginia Tech transfer point guard has tallied 40 points, 13 assists, 8 rebounds, and 6 steals so far in the NCAAT. Ole Miss has the pieces necessary to pull off one of the least desired March Madness upsets. Especially if Michigan State falls behind in the first half like did to Bryant and New Mexico so far this tournament.
The Bet: Ole Miss +3.5
7:39 ET: Kentucky vs Tennessee (-4.5/144.5)
The Wildcats have already knocked off Tennessee twice this season yet Kentucky is once again the underdog to the Volunteers. That’s most likely because Kentucky’s rotation isn’t fully healthy. Jaxson Robinson is out for the year and Lamont Butler is playing with one healthy shoulder. Despite the adversity UK breezed through the first weekend. Add in the presence that Big Blue Nation will have in Indianapolis and the Cats should be considered live on Friday night.
In the two games against the Vols this season Kentucky is 24/48 (50%) from beyond the perimeter. Obviously that probably won’t happen for a third time but if you put Mark Pope’s team’s shotmaking up against Rick Barnes’ squad’s shooting on a neutral court there’s no question you would take Kentucky’s shooting.
Shutting down Chaz Lanier needs to once again be in the game plan for Kentucky to win this game. Against the Wildcats this season Tennessee’s top scorer has 26 points on 3/17 (17.6%) 3pt-shooting. Lanier is by far the Volunteers’ best shooter this season hitting 41% of his deep balls.
The Bet: Kentucky +4.5
9:39 ET: Michigan vs Auburn (-9.5/153.5)
Auburn will probably have 75% of the crowd down in Atlanta, especially if you add all the Michigan State fans. The Tigers haven’t played their best basketball in March but still covered the number against Creighton in their last game. Johni Broome’s health along with Dylan Cardwell’s are pivotal in this matchup. If Auburn’s two big men aren’t 100% the Tigers will have their hands full with Michigan’s two 7-footers.
The Wolverines have been underdogs in four games during their 5-game win streak. UC San Diego was one of the most picked 12-over-5-seed-upsets. Also, in their 5th game in 10 days Michigan knocked off Texas A&M, at elevation. An arena rooting against UofM won’t be new to these players because they beat Purdue by 18 in the Big Ten Tournament hosted by Indianapolis.
Lastly, past history will fuel Michigan on Friday night. Point guard Tre Donaldson was exiled from Auburn and found a home in Ann Arbor. Danny Wolf was a stretch-4 on the Yale team that beat Auburn in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last year. Head Coach Dusty May has been money coaching in the NCAA Tournament to a 6-2 straight up and ATS record. The Wolverines will keep this game to single digits.
The Bet: Michigan +9.5
10:09 ET: Purdue vs Houston (-8.5/131.5)
Purdue will have a home crowd in this game but how much will that matter? The last time the Boilermakers played in front of a neutral court “home crowd” they were blown off the floor in an 18-point loss to Michigan.
Houston is a freight train. Kelvin Sampson’s group is ready to go scorched Earth on the World after they received the worst draw of any 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament. Additionally Sampson has the added motivation to beat Purdue from his time coaching at Indiana.
The Cougars’ physicality will cause problems all over the court for Purdue. Sampson’s defensive gameplan will be to double team Trey Kaufman-Renn. If that happens Purdue will need to hit their outside shots. Fletcher Loyer, who shoots the 3-ball 45.1%, has an elbow injury and is just 27% from deep so far in the NCAA Tournament. This game will be an uphill climb for the Boilermakers.
The Bet: Houston -8.5
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