Last Updated on March 18, 2010 8:12 am by drew
Nova-Robert Morris Pick
Villanova will look to end its string of poor play on Thursday at 12:30PM as the Wildcats face Robert Morris in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
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These two teams will battle it out in the South Region with their game taking place at Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. The Wildcats are the No. 2 seed while Robert Morris is the No. 15 seed.
Oddsmakers from online sports book SPORTSBETTING.com have made Villanova 18-point favorites over Robert Morris on Thursday afternoon. The over/under has been set at 147.
Villanova is 24-7 this season and the Wildcats finished 13-5 in the Big East, but they have lost five of their last seven games coming into the tournament. The Wildcats are making their 31st tournament appearance (one was vacated by the NCAA) in school history and sixth straight. Villanova averages 82.6 points per-game, which ranks third in the NCAA, but Nova gives up 72.9 points per-game, which ranks 245th in the country. Wooden Award candidate, Scottie Reynolds averages 18.5 points per-game to leas the Wildcats. Reynolds shoots 39.9 percent from behind the arc this season.
Robert Morris is making its seventh NCAA Tournament appearance, but the Colonials are seeking their first tournament win. Robert Morris is 23-11 on the season and the Colonials are the Northeast Conference champions. Robert Morris averages 68.5 points per-game, which ranks 170th in the country, while allowing 65.7 points, which puts them 95th in the nation. Karon Abraham leads the Colonials, as he averages 13.4 points while shooting 44 percent from 3-point land and 85 percent from the free throw line. Rob Robinson also adds in 9.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per-game for the Colonials.
Villanova has not been playing well as of late but you can’t expect them to lose outright in this game. Robert Morris will do what it can to slow the Wildcats down, but also look for Villanova to allow Robert Morris to get some easy baskets. For that reason, we expect Robert Morris to cover as the spread is quite high at 18 points.
Our NCAA Tournament Free Pick for this matchup is: ROBERT MORRIS +18 and OVER 147
March Madness Betting Trends
Villanova is 18-7 SU in its last 25 games
The total has gone OVER in 17 of Villanova’s last 25 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Villanova’s last 6 games
Villanova is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
March Madness Injury Report
VILLANOVA
No Injuries Reported
ROBERT MORRIS
[G] 03/06/2010 – Jimmy Langhurst out for season ( Knee )
March Madness Game Odds
Villanova Wildcats -18 Under 147
Robert Morris Colonials +18 Over 147
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Posted: 3/18/10 8:12AM ET