No. 4 Butler vs. No. 13 Winthrop Preview
Where: BMO Harris Bradley Center— Milwaukee, Wisconsin
When: Thursday, March 16, 2017, 1:30 PM ET
Line: Butler Bulldogs (-11) vs. Winthrop Eagles (+11); total: 145.0 – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
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Betting on the Butler Bulldogs (-11)
Butler is a +5,000 sleeper to bag the national championship, and for certain, this team can make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament if things go as planned.
These Bulldogs finished as the second seed in a loaded Big East Conference, while carrying a 23-8 overall record that’s underscored by two regular-season victories over the reigning national champs—Villanova. However, they head into this opener against 13th-seeded Winthrop as losers of their last two contests.
Coach Chris Holtmann and his troops fell to Xavier, 62-57, in the quarterfinal round of the Big East tourney, 62-57, which ruined their hopes of landing a better seed. Kelan Martin led them with 15 points off the bench, and he will continue to be the main driving force of an offense that collects 76.3 points per game this season.
This is the second-straight appearance in the tournament for Butler, which exited in the second round last year.
Betting on the Winthrop Eagles (+11)
Winthrop, which is a +100,000 long shot to win the tournament, has nothing to lose here. This team is the obvious underdog, meaning all the pressure is on the other side.
The Eagles secured their first ticket to the Big Dance since 2010 after claiming the Big South tournament championship, and they have gone 17-2 since the start of 2017. They’re essentially one of those groups that can smoke opponents from beyond the arc, shooting at a collective 38.0 percent.
Senior guard and Big South Player of the Year Keon Johnson fronts the offense with 22.5 points per contest and 99 three-pointers this season. There’s also Xavier Cooks who averages 16.2 points and 9.2 rebounds a game. Those two form a lethal scoring combo that should keep the Eagles competitive in this first-round match with Butler.
Writer’s Prediction
Butler (-11) wins here, but doesn’t cover.
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