2017 March Madness Round of 64 – Florida State Seminoles vs. Florida Gulf Coast Eagles Predictions, Picks and NCAA Basketball Betting Preview

No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 14 Florida Gulf Coast Preview

Where: Amway Center – Orlando, FL

When: Thursday, March 16, 2017 – 9:20 PM ET

Line: Florida State Seminoles (-12.5) vs. Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (+12.5); total: 148.0 – view all NCAA basketball lines

TV Broadcast: TNT

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Betting on the Florida State Seminoles (25-8, 12-6 ACC)

Point Spread: -12.5

The Seminoles had their best regular season in over 25 years, and fell just a few plays short of entering the ACC title game last week. They started out slow against Notre Dame in the conference tournament semis and wasn’t able to complete the comeback in the second half, eventually losing, 77-73.

The good thing was that it was the usual guys that had the ‘Noles rolling, and everything still appeared intact. Dwayne Bacon scored 18, Xavier Rathan-Mayes chipped in 13 points and five assists, while Jonathan Isaac posted five points, 15 rebounds, one steal, and a pair of blocks. Braian Angola-Rodas, who only plays 11.9 minutes per game, even contributed well, as he dropped four threes for 17 points.

We can expect the same productions on Thursday, with Isaac scoring more. Florida State is an offensive machine that pours in 82.5 PPG on 48.3 percent shooting, and they are in a good position to showcase that versus Florida Gulf Coast’s 172nd-ranked defense.

FSU is 13-7 in their last 20 games (10-10 ATS)

Betting on the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (26-7, 12-2 A-Sun)

Point Spread: +12.5

Florida Gulf Coast, one of youngest teams in Division I ball (10 years), will be having their first consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament, thanks to finishing the regular season with the best record in their history. Their great season had them capturing the conference championship and also riding a seven-game winning streak entering the big dance.

Brandon Goodwin is the man to mostly watch out for in this new era of “Dunk City.” The UCF transferee was a big addition to the team, and his inside-out play resulted in him leading the Eagles in points (18.2 PPG), assists (4.0 APG), and threes (1.6) per game.

FGCU has been dominating foes well in their current streak. They are plus 13.5 on points and also shoot 49.2 percent from the floor. Additionally, they are holding the other team to just 42.6 percent shooting, and two of the last three shot below 36 percent.

Writer’s Prediction

FSU (-12.5) survives a scare and fails to cover, 83-78.

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