NCAA Tournament – Crimson vs Bearcats Pick
The Bearcats have had a great season but I think it is fair to say they peaked a little too early. [ad-4468020]
East Region
2014 NCAA Tournament Free Picks
#5 Cincinnati Bearcats vs #12 Harvard Crimson
Thursday March 20
Spokane Arena – Spokane, WA
2:10PM
Moneyline: Cincinnati -150, Harvard +130
Spread: Cincinnati -3
Total: 122.5
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Cincinnati
The reality is this is a good but not great team that was punching well above its weight when ranked in the top 10. The are a strong defensive team with one superlative offensive star.
That is a recipe for success in a lot of cases but one off shooting day could mean these guys go home a lot earlier than they would like.
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That one star us of course Sean Kilpatrick. The senior guard is their leading scorer at 20ppg and he is a classic scorer.
There is no shot he doesn’t think he can make and when he is hot he can be really exciting to watch. Even if it takes 100 shots be he is going to get his but beyond Kilpatrick the Bearcats struggle to score.
Forward Justin Jackson is the second option I suppose but he is more of an energy player than polished scorer.
I can not figure out if this is a good or terrible matchup for Cincinnati. The thing that worries me most is that the Crimson are very composed and won’t wilt away if things are physical and intense and I worry where the Bearcats are going to find secondary scoring.
The spread tells you a lot in this one.
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Harvard
The Crimson enjoyed another strong season and will be representing the Ivy League again. The preseason hype of this being a top 25 type team died down pretty quickly but they are still going to be a very tough out.
Last year they knocked out New Mexico in the round of 64 and a lot of the same players are back and looking to go further this season. They are not a team to be easily dismissed.
Harvard runs a deliberate offense and they are efficient with it. They have a very good group of outside shooters which can keep them in most games led by Siyani Chambers and Laurent Rivard who both make 40% or more of their shots from behind the arc.
They have 5 players that average 10 or more points which will make it hard for Cincinnati to focus on shutting down leading scorer Wesley Saunders.
I do think that this is a matchup that is really good for Harvard. As long as they shoot like they normally do they will be in this one and if they can get a lead they should be able to hold it.
In the whole East region this is the one upset I see happening at this stage.
Hopefully Cincinnati gets bet up a little more.
Spread prediction: Harvard +3
Total prediction: Over
Score prediction: Harvard 67 – Cincinnati 65
