Doug McDermott is ending his storied college career with a bang, but can he make it even sweeter by taking Creighton to its first Sweet 16 in history? Standing in his way are the Baylor Bears, who are playing their best basketball of the year at exactly the right time.
Keep reading for all the news and stats you need to bet this big time Round of 32 March Madness game.
Line: No. 6 Baylor Bears (+3.5) at No. 3 Creighton Bluejays (-3.5); total 143.0
Betting on the Creighton Bluejays
[sc:finalfour240 ]Creighton just about played to its average level of performance to emerge as 10-point winners against Louisiana-Lafayette in the Round of 64. The Bluejays shot 52% from the field and 39% from beyond the arc against the Cajuns to earn their 73 points, three off their season average of 76. As the most efficient team this year, they shot 50% overall and 42% from three.
Senior Doug McDermott continued his end-of-college-career tear with 30 more points and 12 rebounds. The likely consensus player of the year is averaging 34 PPG in his last five games and Creighton is 4-1 in those games. Sharpshooter Ethan Wragge bounced back from his 1-7 off-night in the loss to Providence by going 4-8 from three.
Betting on the Baylor Bears
Despite some poor shooting (41% from the field and 15% from beyond the arc), Baylor beat Nebraska by 14. One of the country’s most frequent visitors of the free throw line, the Bears made a massive 48 trips to the stripe thanks to 31 Cornhuskers fouls.
Isaiah Austin and Brady Heslip attempted 10 free throws each, while senior Cory Jefferson led the way with 16 points. The Big 12 tournament final loss to Iowa State has been the Bears’ only hiccup in March. Baylor is 7-1 SU and 6-2 ATS in its last eight games.
Prediction
Baylor is one of the worst teams in the country in defending the three-point line, making Creighton an absolute nightmare match-up for the Bears. Doug McBuckets will get his, but if Wragge can make his threes, the Bluejays should cover the 3.5-point spread with ease.
