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Charlie Grant
Nevada (7) vs. Texas (10) Odds: March Madness Prediction
Shaka Smart was the man on the sidelines calling the shots in 2011 when 11th-seeded VCU shocked the world by making it all the way to the Final Four. Now the head coach at a much bigger program, Smart will need a bigger miracle to see his shorthanded Longhorns make a deep run in the tournament.
NCAA Tournament Odds and Betting Analysis
Nevada won the regular season title in a competitive and talented Mountain West conference. The Wolf Pack beat Rhode Island, squashed Davidson and Radford, and narrowly lost to Big 12 teams TCU and Texas Tech. Nevada is 27-7 straight up and 16-14-3 against the spread this season but 1-3-1 ATS in games played at a neutral site. The Wolf Pack got bounced from its league tourney by a hot San Diego State side in the semifinals.
Texas had an erratic campaign off the court and it had to affect the team’s play on it. The Longhorns longest winning streak in their Big 12 schedule was two games. They took Duke and Gonzaga to overtime during their nonconference sked but lost both games. Texas finished the season 19-14 straight up and 15-14 against the spread.
Oddsmakers opened with this March Madness matchup set as a Pick ’em.
Texas Longhorns
Starting point guard Andrew Jones was enjoying a fine sophomore season before he was diagnosed with leukemia in January. Jones is recently released from hospital but his basketball season is obviously over. It appears the same can be said about Jones’ former backcourt mate Eric Davis Jr. but for a much different reason. Davis Jr.’s name came up in a report that suggested he took money from an agent. Smart acted right away and removed his shooting guard from Texas’ lineup.
The good news for Longhorns supporters is that everything appears to be OK with starting center and shot-blocking menace Mo Bamba. The freshman sat out all or parts of the last three games because of left toe injury but says he’s ready to go for the Big Dance. March Madness betting sharps will need to keep a close eye on how Bamba looks early on.
Nevada Wolf Pack
Nevada dealt with a slew of injuries and a one point had to borrow players from the school’s football team to run a full practice. The squad has ploughed through but there were some alarming concerns late in the season – particularly with its best player. The Wolf Pack won’t get its howl back until leading scorer Caleb Martin finds his jumper. The junior forward went a combined 10 for 34 from the field in the Mountain West tournament. Martin leads Nevada in scoring at nearly 20 points per game and averages 2.7 made triples per game.
