NC State (11) vs. Marquette (2) Sweet 16 Bracket Prediction: March Madness Odds
The Golden Eagles opened as 6.5-point favourites on the college basketball odds.
NC State vs. Marquette NCAA Tournament Point Spread and Betting
The winner of this game will face either No. 1 Houston or No. 4 Duke in the South Region final Sunday from Dallas for a spot in the Final Four.
NC State is the only double-digit seed still standing and wouldn’t be in the NCAA Tournament if not for winning five games in five days to capture the ACC Tournament in a big surprise. The Wolfpack are in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015 when as a No. 8 seed they lost by 10 to No. 4 Louisville. NC State hasn’t advanced to the Elite Eight since the 1986 season.
It was hard to judge Marquette entering the Dance because All-American point guard Tyler Kolek missed a handful of games at the end of the regular season and the Big East Tournament for the Golden Eagles with an oblique injury, but he’s back healthy now. It’s the first trip to the Sweet 16 for MU since 2013 when it got to the Elite Eight.
To win the South, Marquette is +220 and NC State +1300.
NC State Wolfpack
NC State was a 5-point underdog when it beat No. 6 Texas Tech by 13 in Round 1 but was a 6.5-point favourite when it escaped against No. 14 Oakland, 79-73 in overtime in the Round of 32 on Saturday. The Golden Grizzlies had little answer for 6-foot-9, 275-pound DJ Burns, who had 24 points, 11 rebounds and four assists in 42 minutes. He became the first NC State player to score at least 20 points and 10 rebounds with at least 40 minutes played in an NCAA Tournament game since David Thompson and Tom Burleson in NC State’s memorable double-overtime 1974 national semifinals victory over UCLA. Fellow forward Mohamed Diarra added 11 points and 13 rebounds as NC State dominated the boards vs. Oakland. It was Diarra’s fourth double-double in the last five games. A big reason that the Wolfpack are on a seven-game winning streak is they are averaging only 9.1 turnovers per game in that stretch. NC State hasn’t played a Big East team this season. It last played Marquette in 2009.
Marquette Golden Eagles
Marquette had no trouble in Round 1 vs. No. 15 Western Kentucky but held off No. 10 Colorado, 81-77 in the Round of 32 on Sunday as star guard Tyler Kolek had 21 points and 11 assists, while fellow guard Kam Jones scored 18 points but was limited to 24 minutes due to foul trouble. David Joplin made two free throws with 7.4 seconds left to clinch it. Marquette shot 61.8 per cent from the field and is dynamic offensively when Kolek is healthy. He is the third player in the last 10 years nationally with a combined 30 points and 20 assists in two NCAA Tournament games. This will mark Coach Shaka Smart’s first Sweet 16 appearance since he led Virginia Commonwealth to the Final Four in 2011. Smart only uses seven players on this year’s squad for the most part. Marquette did face on ACC team this season and won by 19 at home vs. Notre Dame on Dec. 9. The Irish lost by two at home in their lone meeting vs. NC State.
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