SMU Mustangs vs. Miami (OH) RedHawks Bracket Prediction: March Madness First Four Odds
The last of the First Four contests features two of the most criticized teams in the entire men’s basketball NCAA Tournament.
There are plenty out there who believe that both underwhelming Miami (Ohio) and SMU deserve to be on the outside looking in instead of participating in March Madness.
The two No. 11 seeds meet up in Dayton at 9:40 p.m. ET. on Wednesday night. At the game’s conclusion, those pundits will be right about one of them.
The RedHawks were the talk of the town after becoming just the fifth Division I team this century to finish the regular season undefeated.
Unfortunately for Miami, whispers about its easy schedule turned to screams after it was bounced from the Mid-American Conference Tournament in the quarterfinals.
And SMU has seemingly been playing itself out of a tournament spot after losing five of six to close the season and going just 8-11 after a 12-2 start.
SMU Mustangs vs. Miami (OH) RedHawks NCAA Tournament Point Spread and Betting
Miami went 19-10 against the spread this season, but just 1-4 ATS in its last five games. The RedHawks were 24-1 straight up as a favourite, and 4-0 as a dog, which is what they will be going into Wednesday night. They’re currently listed at +7.5 points on the March Madness odds.
The Mustangs, meanwhile, went just 15-17-1 against the spread, and are 2-4 ATS in their last six games. SMU went 17-4 as a favourite this season.
SMU Mustangs
Do the Mustangs even want to be here? Looking at the second half of their schedule and trying to find wins is like playing Where’s Waldo.
With big-time scorers like Boopie Miller (19.2 ppg, 6.4 AST.) and Jaron Pierre Jr. (17.6 ppg., 4.9 REB.), the Mustangs can hang with anyone. That is why they have played to the over in nine of their last 13 games.
But it is hard to ignore the late-season swoon. This is a team that knocked off ranked North Carolina and Louisville squads, but went just 8-10 in the ACC and losing by double digits at Stanford and Louisville before getting by those same Cardinals in a rubber match at the ACC Tournament.
Miami (OH) RedHawks
It didn’t matter that the RedHawks went 31-0 or 18-0 in the MAC. With two-point victories over Western Michigan, Ohio, Toledo, and Ohio to close the season, the last one a 110-108 overtime thriller, it was just a matter of time before Miami went down.
Better in the MAC Tournament than Wednesday night, but this team will not get any kind of credit until it shows it can beat a team from one of the top conferences.
Brant Byers had 17 points to lead Miami in its 87-83 overtime loss to UMASS in the tournament. He is one of five RedHawks averaging in double figures. Peter Suder, who had 10 points and seven assists against the Minutemen, leads everyone with 14.6 points per game.
This is a balanced starting lineup, but they won’t intimidate anyone.
March Madness Prediction: Who Will Win SMU vs. Miami (OH)?
There’s a reason why a 31-1 squad is playing Wednesday night, and why it is a 7.5-point underdog.
If SMU weren’t so frustratingly inconsistent, the spread would be even higher. Miami can certainly win this game, but it won’t. Take the Mustangs to win and advance, 80-75.