Georgetown survived a late surge from 13th seed Eastern Washington. Meanwhile, Utah outplayed Stephen F. Austin to live another day in the NCAA tournament. The two teams face each other in what should be an entertaining No. 4 vs. No. 5 matchup. Can Georgetown weather the high-octane offense of the Utes? Read on as we break down this action-packed affair.
Looking for more fast-paced college hoops action? Check out our complete previews for the explosive Round of 32 games North Carolina vs. Arkansas and Villanova vs. NC State.
[sc:MarchMadness ]March Madness No. 4 Georgetown Hoyas vs. No. 5 Utah Utes Preview
Where: Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
When: Saturday, March 21, 7:45 PM ET
Line: No. 4 Georgetown Hoyas vs. No. 5 Utah Utes – view all March Madness lines
Betting on the Georgetown Hoyas
D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera had 25 points while Mikael Hopkins had 10 points and nine rebounds as the Georgetown Hoyas made one more step toward the national title. A dance with Utah’s 11th-ranked defense (56.7 points allowed per game) awaits them in the Round of 32.
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]Georgetown caught fire from beyond the arc in their 84-74 win over Eastern Washington. Smith-Rivera led the way going 4-of-7 from downtown. As a whole, the Hoyas made 11-of-23 three-pointers as they outgunned the high-scoring Eagles.
The Hoyas may be able to rain down threes again in this game. Utah had allowed opponents to shoot 43 percent from beyond the arc in three games before limiting Stephen F. Austin to 19 percent in the Round of 64.
Georgetown faced another of the country’s tougher defensive teams, Butler (60.8 points allowed per game), earlier in the season. The Hoyas won two of three games against Butler, averaging 59.7 points while shooting 37 percent from beyond the arc. Smith-Rivera averaged 14 points on 13-of-31 shooting (4-of-13 from three-point range) in those games.
The Hoyas have lost four of their last six tournament games. All their losses came against lower-seeded teams.
Betting on the Utah Utes
The Utah Utes were unimpressive entering the national tournament. They had lost four of their last seven games before they took a 57-50 win against Stephen F. Austin, a trendy pick in brackets across the nation, in their tournament opener.
Leading scorers Delon Wright (14.9 points per game) and Brandon Taylor (10.7 points per game) combined for just 13 points on 3-of-12 shooting. But Jakob Poeltl stepped up his game putting up 18 points on a perfect shooting night (7-of-7), eight rebounds and five blocks.
Considering Georgetown doesn’t have a particularly strong defense (64.9 points allowed per game, 133rd in the nation), Wright and Taylor should find themselves hitting their shots. Meanwhile, Poeltl should be able to use his size against a less-than-stellar Georgetown frontcourt.
While the Utes can put up plenty of points (they rank 59th in the nation with 72.1 points per game), they could also force their opponents into costly turnovers. Wright and Taylor are averaging 2.1 and 1.2 steals per game respectively. The two should be able to exploit Georgetown’s tendency to give up almost 13 turnovers per game.
The Utes are 4-1 ATS in their last five games at neutral locations.
Writer’s Prediction
The Utes advance behind a solid effort on both sides of the court.
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