Once again the Syracuse Orangemen are sitting on the NCAA Tournament bubble, but they have a glorious chance to improve their situation with three games against top-15 teams in their last four regular season contests. If the Orange are going to make the tournament, they’ll definitely earn it. The first of those three games comes against the scorching-hot North Carolina Tar Heels, who have won five straight.
This war on the floor will go down Wednesday, February 21, 2018, at 7 p.m. ET at the Carrier Dome. The game will be televised live on ESPN. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Wednesday schedule.
Opening College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
It must be getting close to tournament time because the Tar Heels have turned it on. UNC sleepwalked through the month of January posting a 4-5 record and losing their final three games of the month as a favorite in each of them. But once February rolled around, the Heels came alive. It helped that Pitt was the first opponent of the month and UNC had impressive wins over Duke and NC State. The Heels won and covered all five games while outscoring their opponent by an average of over 15 points per game.
The knock on the Orange is that they haven’t secured a marquee win to improve their resume. They are 0-4 against ranked teams and their best victory likely came on Saturday when they defeated the struggling Miami Hurricanes on the road. The opportunity to get the signature win and improve their tournament chances presents itself over the next few weeks with three matchups against the ACC’s best.
Player to Watch
Keep a close eye on Cuse’s Tyus Battle because you’re going to see a lot of him. With the departure of several players before the season started, the burden of leadership fell squarely on Battle’s shoulders, and he’s delivered in a big way.
Not only does Battle lead the team and rank third in the ACC scoring 20 points per game, he also gets to the free throw line, and helps his point total by knocking down 83 percent of his foul shots. Battle wasn’t at his best on Saturday, but he helped Cuse beat Miami by scoring six points in the final 1:26.
He was at his best late in the game, which is a common occurrence. Battle played 40 minutes for the eighth straight game and the 18th time this season. He averages nearly 39 minutes per game and is the key to Syracuse’s success. Barring foul trouble or injury, expect to see Battle doing his business on Wednesday in a critical game for the Orange.
Key Stat
Tempo, tempo, tempo. That’s what the Heels have done and that’s what they will do against Syracuse for several reasons. UNC has the sixth-best offensive efficiency rating in the country at 121.6, and their stable of young, athletic players likes to get out in transition.
The Heels have been successful during their winning streak averaging 90 points while scoring no fewer than 82 in any game. And they’ll try to run the Orange off the floor. Cuse has three players who play the entire game and making Battle, Frank Howard and Oshae Brissett expend energy on the defensive end takes away their ability to produce at the other end.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
Syracuse hasn’t performed well against ranked competition. However, with their tournament lives hanging in the balance over the next four games, they will come out firing. Battle is a star and has carried the team most of the season. Along with Howard and Brissett, the trio plays over 38 minutes each and accounts for nearly 75 percent of the team’s offense.
UNC has more depth and more options and as long as the Heels don’t get overwhelmed, they should win this game. Look for the Heels to push the pace like they’ve done over the past five games and that will wear down the three Syracuse weapons.
Joel Berry, Kenny Williams and Luke Maye are no strangers to playing plenty of minutes, but they get a breather every now and then, and that will be the difference in crunch time. Look for the Heels to pull away in the second half for a cover win.
College Basketball Odds: North Carolina 84, Syracuse 75
BookMaker.eu offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu!
