North Carolina Tar Heels vs. Butler Bulldogs Buccaneers Preview
Where: FedEx Forum— Memphis, Tennessee
When: Friday, March 24, 2017, 7:09 PM ET
Line: North Carolina Tar Heels (-7.5) vs. Butler Bulldogs (+7.5); total: 153.0 – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: CBS
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Betting on the North Carolina Tar Heels (-7.5)
Unlike their 103-64 beatdown of Texas Southern in the opening round, the first-seeded Tar Heels (+450) needed everything they had to fend off Arkansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament’s South Region.
That matchup came all the way down to the final few possessions, which suddenly put UNC’s season in serious jeopardy. But the experience of coach Roy Williams’ side was able to save them from the early elimination.
Kennedy Meeks, who finished with 16 points, delivered a huge tip-in with exactly 44.2 seconds remaining and helped the Tar Heels close out the game on a 12-0 run to hand their coach his 18th trip to the Sweet 16, dating all the way back to his days with Kansas.
Meeks was also a big factor in the battle of the boards. He grabbed seven of the team’s total of 18 offensive rebounds. North Carolina will have to continue owning the glass, especially if it struggles to find its rhythm again. The team shot just 38.1 percent from the field, including 29.4 percent from down town, against the Razorbacks.
Betting on the Butler Bulldogs (+7.5)
This Butler group is filled with streaky shooters who, at almost any moment, can break any game wide open.
Kelan Martin is one of them. He led the Bulldogs to the 74-65 win over Middle Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, finishing with 19 points, six rebounds and four assists, while also going 3-for-6 from beyond the arc.
The Bulldogs can also play tenacious defense. They held the Blue Raiders to just 65 points, and made Conference USA Player of the Year JaCorey Williams and Giddy Potts really work for their points. The latter was held scoreless and went 0-for-8 from the field.
Having all of that said, there’s no reason why Butler can’t pull off an upset here. This is a team that plays hard on both ends of the court, and one that’s attractively priced at +4,000 to win the national championship.
Writer’s Prediction
UNC (-7.5) guts out another thriller, 77-72.
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