#5 Commodores (24-10) vs #12 Crimson (26-4)
It feels like a bit of a setup having two schools better known for academics than hoops meeting in the first round.
Thursday Mar 15
East Region Albuquerque, NM
4:40PM
Moneyline: No money line currently listed.
Spread: Vanderbilt -5.5
O/U: 122.5
Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt proved in the SEC tournament that it is good enough to beat any team in the country but they have also proven over the years that they can crack when the pressure is on.
Past failings make this one of the early upset watch spots even though they are the far more talented team.
With veterans John Jenkins, Jeffrey Taylor and Festus Ezeli, Vandy may have three NBA players on their roster.
Each provide a different aspect to the game too, complimenting each other nicely. The one thing I don’t like about Vanderbilt is that sometimes they are too patient.
Instead of knocking teams out they play at their pace and sometimes keep teams they should destroy in the ball game. This is elimination time and I hope they are up for it because they match up well with a lot of their projected opponents in the bracket. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Harvard
One of the long running story lines this year was about Harvard’s pursuit of an elusive NCAA bid. Early on, when they beat the likes of Florida State, it looked like a sure thing, but a couple of stumbles in Ivy League play forced the Crimson to wait until the last day of the season to know if they were in.
I know this team was in the top 25 early in the year but let’s be fair, they are a nicer story than they are a threat to bust your bracket.
It may be cliche but you know that Harvard is going to play smart. They are also lucky to have a coach who is familiar with big time basketball. But where are they going to get points from when they really need it? The defense should be there and this team has enough size to not get pushed around.
The game will probably play out like this. The Crimson will probably get outscored by three for every 10 minutes of game action.
It adds up to a 12 point loss that will feel like a close game.
Spread Pick: Vanderbilt -5.5
O/U Pick: Over
Score Prediction: Vanderbilt 72 – Harvard 60
