The Villanova Wildcats have officially shaken off their normal March swoons. They've won the South Region against a lot of really good teams, but they haven't taken on a team yet with that one legitimate NBA superstar who can take a game over all by himself. The Oklahoma Sooners won the West by knocking out top-seeded Oregon in the Elite Eight, and they'll bring their stud, Buddy Hield to Houston where they could have a bit of a home court edge in the Final Four.
College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
Villanova Wildcats -2.5
Oklahoma Sooners +2.5
Over/Under 146.5
HOW THE VILLANOVA WILDCATS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
The Wildcats found a way to silence Perry Ellis in the Elite Eight, and they made Angel Rodriguez a generally useless player in the Sweet 16. Those two tasks in and of themselves are difficult, but the task becomes a whole heck of a lot harder now with Hield on the other side of the court.
Villanova forced 16 turnovers against Kansas on Saturday night, and KU's two de facto point guards, Devonte' Graham and Frank Mason combined for just four assists against seven turnovers.
Defense got the Wildcats this far, and defense is going to have to win this game, too. Daniel Ochefu has been fantastic in the low block, and his presence alone is going to make Oklahoma revert to being more of a jump shooting team than anything else.
That's the Sooners M.O. anyway, and the Cats are going to have to live and die with the results if that's how this game plays out.
HOW THE OKLAHOMA SOONERS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Obviously, Hield is going to have to have a fantastic game for Oklahoma to have a chance at pulling this mild upset, but the real question is whether there are going to be enough contributors around him to stretch Villanova's defense out.
Isaiah Cousins and Jordan Woodard each hit a couple threes against Oregon in the Elite Eight, and that's really good enough if Hield is going to hit eight threes and score 37 points as he did that night.
Defensively, the Sooners aren't great, but they've had their moments, particularly when Ryan Spangler is playing well, that they can force teams into effectively becoming jump shooters as well. That's what happened to Oregon on Saturday night, and that could be what happens to Villanova as well.
The Wildcats have already had one game in this tournament against Miami in which they shot 63 percent from the field, so we know their efficiency is through the roof. We know that Ryan Arcidiacono is the man that is the heart of this team, and he'll have to be put under wraps, or Villanova will continue its efficient ways, putting a ton of strain on Hield to keep up by himself.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Superstars ultimately win big games, and we think that this is going to be the day where Hield shines the brightest. We know that eventually, someone is going to have to step up around him, but as long as the defense can keep the Wildcats in the 40s in terms of shooting percentage, we think the Sooners are going to be alright in this one.
All the credit in the world goes out to Villanova and its seniors for getting over its March troubles, but this is where the road ends as we see it. The nation deserves to see Buddy Hield in the National Championship Game, and that's exactly what it'll get.
Oklahoma 78, Villanova 74
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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 Final Four contest pitting the Villanova Wildcats versus the Oklahoma Sooners will commence Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 6:09 p.m. ET at NRG Stadium. See the game live on TBS.
