Tip off: 9:45 PM EST
Spread: KY -9.5
Total: 144
M/L: KY -610, IND +485
Betting Odds taken from Bookmaker
Indiana
Indiana closed out the season strong, before losing to #12 ranked Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship game, giving up 13 threes to the Badgers on 26 attempts. They’re going to have to do a much better job of closing out shooters to advance very far in this tournament.?
Three Hoosiers scored 17 points in the losing effort — Jordan Hulls, Christian Watford, and Cody Zeller.
Zeller, a 6’11″ freshman, leads the team in scoring with 15.5 points per game, while also snagging a team high 6.4 boards per contest. He shot 5 of 9 from the floor against the Badgers, but somehow managed just one rebound after grabbing 10 the game before against Penn State. He has scored in double figures in the last four Hoosiers games, averaging 16.8 points per game over that span.
Zeller’s efforts are met by three other Hoosiers in double figure scoring, with Watford (12.0 per game), Hulls (11.5) and Victor Oladipo (10.9) rounding out the attack.?No Hoosiers player sees more than 30 minutes a game, though the Hoosiers stick to a pretty tight six man rotation, with Matt Roth, Derek Elston, and Tom Prichard seeing only fringe minutes.
Hoosiers Betting Trends:
18-10 ATS last 28 games, 6-4 ATS when total is between 140 and 149.5, 3-2 ATS in neutral court games, 8-1 ATS in non-conf. games, 8-2 ATS after a non-conf game, 6-3 ATS as an underdog
Kentucky
As most already realize, the 33-2 Wildcats are the tournament favorite. At 33-2, their only losses have come to Indiana and Vanderbilt, though the loss to Vandy was in the SEC championship just last week.
It was a bad way to enter the tournament, but maybe some feel that it’s best to get the loss out of the way now since the Cats hadn’t lost since December 10th (the Hoosiers game).
The Wildcats use a balanced attack centered, with all starters nearly averaging double figures (starting point guard Marquis Teague is at 9.4 per game). Anthony
Davis has emerged as the consensus #1 overall pick this June in the NBA Draft, and he’s blocking an astounding 4.6 shots per game. His interior defense is one of the main reasons for the Wildcats’ success this year. His 14.3 points per game also lead the team.
Sophomore guard Doron Lamb will also be counted upon heavily. The 6’4? sophomore is averaging a second best on the team 13.2 points per game. Lamb has scored in double figures in 24 of the 34 Kentucky games, but struggled badly with a 2-11 shooting night against Vanderbilt in the SEC Championship.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist must become more involved in the offense. Kidd-Gilchrist has attempted no more than 8 shots in the Wildcats’ last five games, yet has hit 16 of his 29 field goal attempts over that span. It’s not that he’s shooting less (8.1 attempts per game on the season), it’s just that he could make a greater impact, and possibly will, if they can get him more involved in this run. He’s declared for the NBA Draft now, so this is his big chance to help his draft stock..
Wildcats Betting Trends:
14-21 ATS last 35 games, 14-21 ATS as a favorite, 5-11 ATS after a non-conf game, 5-8 ATS after scoring 80 or more, 3-6 ATS in neutral court games.
