Sunday's comeback for the Texas A&M Aggies to knock Northern Iowa out of the NCAA Tournament will be talked about forever in College Station. However, none of it will mean a heck of a lot unless the Aggies can take down the Oklahoma Sooners in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night.
NCAA Tournament Odds at BookMaker.eu
Texas A&M Aggies +2
Oklahoma Sooners –2
Over/Under 146.5
HOW THEY GOT HERE
The Aggies have scored 92 points in each of their first two games, but it's tough to say that they've really played all that well offensively. They took advantage of a miserable Green Bay defense and figured out that they could score whenever they wanted in the post, and they followed that up by going on a ridiculous run in an otherwise drab offensive showing against Northern Iowa.
Still, you've got to love the grit of this team. It's not just erasing the 69-57 deficit in 44 seconds that was impressive. Live bettors should love the fact that the Aggies have now outscore their two foes by 32 combined points in the second halves and overtime thus far in the tournament.
Oklahoma didn't cover either spread in the first week of the tourney, but it came really close on both accounts. Live bettors won't love the fact that OU has only been on the right side of the cover line for a total of about six minutes in the second halves of games in the tourney, and it was only in front of the spread against CSU Bakersfield for one possession right at the end of the game before the Roadrunners hit the backdoor.
KEY MATCHUP
We've talked about Oklahoma being a jump shooting team in the past, but there isn't a streakier man on the floor than Buddy Hield. When Hield is on his game, the Sooners just don't get beaten, and if you don't believe us, just ask anyone who was on the court for VCU on Sunday night.
Hield was amazing in the second half of that game, and he finished with 36 points on 11-of-20 shooting including 6-of-14 from beyond the arc. There isn't a better or more lethal three-point shooter in the nation than Hield, and live bettors know at the first sign of him turning it on, it's the time to back the Sooners for a while, because odds have it, he isn't cooling off.
It's not like Hield was up against a poor defense on Sunday versus the Rams either. JeQuan Lewis was right in his grill for a good chunk of the game. Danuel House, Alex Caruso and perhaps even Jalen Jones will all take their shots at defending Hield, and the hope is going to be that the size these men present themselves with will frustrate Hield and throw off his shot.
KEY STATS & TRENDS
Free throw shooting is so crucial in live betting, and it's a stat we love to highlight when there's a huge discrepancy in tourney games. Oklahoma has some dud foul shooters on the court, but for the most part, guys like Hield and Isaiah Cousins are lethal from the stripe. The Sooners shoot 72.5 percent, a far cry from the 67.6 percent A&M shoots. If this game comes down to a few foul shots, live bettors know which way to turn.
However, Oklahoma has had some real problems covering games of late. Not only is the team 0-2 ATS in the tourney, but it's now 0-7 ATS in its last seven games overall and hasn't covered a game yet in March.
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Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The Sweet 16 matchup between the Texas A&M Aggies and Oklahoma Sooners will go down Thursday, March 24, 2016 at 7:37 p.m. ET at the Honda Center. The matchup will be televised live on TBS.
