2011 NCAA Tournament Second Round – Southwest Region
#5 Vanderbilt Commodores vs. #12 Richmond Spiders, Pepsi Center, Denver, CO
Thursday, March 17, 2011, 4:10 pm Eastern, TV: TBS
Opening Line: Vanderbilt -2
Current Line: Vanderbilt -2
Opening Total: 135
Current Total: 135
Money Line: Vanderbilt -130 / Richmond +110
The Richmond Spiders (27-7) might be the most popular upset pick in their 5-12 matchup with the Vanderbilt Commodores (23-10) on Thursday in the second round of the NCAA tournament at Denver’s Pepsi Center. The fifth-seeded Spiders have won their last seven games both straight-up and against the spread, capped by their 67-54 victory against Dayton in the Atlantic-10 Conference tournament title game last Sunday.
While Richmond has definitely caught fire heading into the Big Dance, Vanderbilt (-2) seems to be an easy target to pick against due to past failures in the NCAA tournament. The Commodores were knocked out in the first round in their last two appearances despite being favorites both times. They lost to Murray State 66-65 last year as a #4 seed and were also routed by Siena 83-62 in 2008 as a #4. That explains why they could not garner better than a #5 this time around.
Vandy finished third in the Southeastern Conference’s East Division during the regular season with a 9-7 record and was then bounced by Florida 77-66 in the semifinals of the SEC tourney last Saturday. The Commodores lost to the Gators for the second time in four games but led the latest meeting 36-28 at halftime before crumbling after the intermission. They are 0-3-1 against the spread in their last four games with the OVER going 3-1 during that stretch.
The Spiders got to the Atlantic-10 championship game by knocking out top seed Temple 58-54 in the semifinals as 3.5-point underdogs. They had beaten Rhode Island 55-45 in their previous game and followed up the win over the Owls by grounding the Flyers for the automatic bid.
Defense has been the focus of Richmond during the winning streak, as the total has gone UNDER in the team’s last six games along with eight of nine. The Spiders have held their last six opponents under 60 points, and they are surrendering an average of just 61 points per game this season. In their last NCAA tournament appearance last year, they lost to St. Mary’s 80-71 in a game that sailed OVER the total.
Vanderbilt has struggled at times in low-scoring games, dropping two of its last three games when the total has dipped UNDER. Those two losses also were coincidentally against NCAA tournament teams in Kentucky and Tennessee. However, the OVER is 10-4 in the last 14 games the Commodores have been favored in.
If you are betting this NCAA tournament game between Vanderbilt & Richmond, make sure to check out the winning basketball picks packages we offer. You can also get free winners on our free NCAA basketball picks page.
