The Miami Hurricanes will be facing off with the champs of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, the Drake Bulldogs in the first round this Friday. Check out our preview of this Miami vs Drake matchup in the 2023 March Madness. There are more college basketball previews to read here at TopBet, so feel free to look around and make bets on the NCAA tournament once you’re ready.
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Betting Preview for the Miami Hurricanes vs Drake Bulldogs NCAA College Basketball Game on March 17, 2023
Where: MVP Arena, Albany, New York
When: Friday, March 17, 2023, 7:25 PM ET
Line: Miami Hurricanes (-2.0) vs. Drake Bulldogs (+2.0) – view all 2023 NCAAB lines
TV Broadcast: TBS
Betting on the Miami Hurricanes (-2.0)
Record: 25-7 Overall/15-5 Conference
Although the Hurricanes failed to win the ACC tourney, as they got eliminated by the Duke Blue Devils in an 85-78 loss last Friday, they are full of confidence in their abilities to get past the first round. Miami is a battle-tested team. In fact, the Hurricanes won the regular season title in the ACC, which speaks a lot about how good this squad is. Miami has seven Quadrant 1 wins and six Quadrant 2 victories, more than enough to score an invite to the Big Dance. The Hurricanes boast one of the best offenses in the nation, as KenPom ranks them 12th with 118.2 points per 100 possessions and 19th with a 55.0 effective field goal percentage.
Miami is 7-1-1 against the spread in its last nine Friday games.
Betting on the Drake Bulldogs (+2.0)
Record: 27-7 Overall/15-5 Conference
Drake is going to be some kind of a mystery in the NCAA tournament, especially for casual college basketball fans. But this is a team that deserves respect. It will be a shock to most if the Bulldogs beat Miami in the first round, but a deeper look at Drake would suggest that it is really good enough to win against the ‘Canes. For one, Drake is very good defensively. It finished the regular season in the Missouri Valley Conference No. 1 with a 93.4 defensive rating. The tandem of Tucker DeVries and Roman Penn can be trouble for the Hurricanes’ leaky defense that is just 133rd in the nation with 103.4 points allowed per 100 possessions adjusted. DeVries leads the Bulldogs with 19.0 points per game, while Penn is averaging 12.6 points and 5.4 assists per outing.
Drake is 8-1 against the spread in its last nine games.
Writer’s Prediction
Miami wins, 74-71.
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