The Cincinnati Bearcats are finally getting the respect they deserve. Coming into the season, all the talk was about how Wichita State was going to win the conference and potentially get a No. 1 seed. However, the Bearcats showed that they were still one of the top dogs in the AAC, winning the conference’s regular season title and the tournament to boot.
Now, Cincinnati is looking to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. This is the lowest seed the Bearcats have had since 2002, and they are looking to make the most out of it. They will face the Georgia State Panthers in the first round on Friday.
This war on the floor will go down Friday, March 16, 2018, at 2 p.m. ET at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. The game will be televised live on TBS. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game throughout March Madness.
Opening NCAAB Basketball Betting Odds at BookMaker.eu
Georgia State +14
Cincinnati -14
Over/Under 130
Georgia State made it to this point with some help from the team it beat in the finals, UT Arlington. Louisiana-Lafayette was the frontrunner to win the Sun Belt and dominated the conference in the regular season, but the Mavericks pipped the Ragin’ Cajuns in the semifinals. The Panthers were a slight favorite to beat the Mavericks in the conference title game per the CBB betting odds, and they ended up beating UT Arlington 74-61.
The Bearcats have looked really good most of the season, but they never got that quality non-conference win they wanted. Their best win out of the AAC came against UCLA, and the Bruins just barely made it into the tournament.
Matchup to Watch
Cincinnati should have a big day on the glass against Georgia State. The Bearcats have a lot of size, and Gary Clark has been tough to stop in the paint. Clark notched a double-double in all three AAC tournament games, helping his team control the glass in the process.
The Panthers don’t have much size to speak of apart from Jordan Session. Session is 6’8 and is the team’s second-leading rebounder, and he will need to have a big game in order to keep Clark and the Bearcats in check. Georgia State is averaging just 34 rebounds per game this year, and Cincinnati might pound the paint against them.
Key Stat
Georgia State is going to find it tough to score against this team. If not for the ungodly year that Virginia is having, Cincinnati would have the best defense in the country by a decent margin.
The Bearcats are second in the NCAA in PPG allowed at 57.1 PPG, and they are second in field goal percentage too, allowing opponents to hit 37 percent from the field. Those numbers aren’t just buoyed by playing in a weak conference either. Ken Pomeroy has Cincinnati as the second-best defense in the NCAA too.
That means Devin Mitchell is going to have to play great. Mitchell is the most efficient shooter on the team, hitting 45.1 percent of his threes. He came up clutch against arch rival Georgia Southern in the semifinal and will need to be here.
Free March Madness ATS Picks
This is just too much of a mismatch. Georgia State has to feel great about getting to the tournament for the fourth time in its history and did make some noise three years ago when it upset Baylor as a No. 14 seed.
However, Cincinnati is just too good and can beat you in two many ways. The Bearcats thrive on rebounding and defense, the two things that historically matter in the tournament, and that bodes well for them here. Look for Cincinnati to pick up the cover in this battle.
NCAAB Basketball Betting Odds: Cincinnati 74, Georgia State 55
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