Michigan State and Miami Square off in NCAA Tournament

NCAA Tournament is Chance to Cap off Bad Seasons

The fans at BOK Center will see two underachieving teams tonight when the Michigan State Spartans and the Miami Hurricanes meet seats on Friday. This NCAA Tournament matchup could be the start of a redemption, of sorts, of teams expected to compete for their conference championships. Eighth-seeded Miami is making its third NCAA Tournament appearance under coach Jim Larranaga. He has guided the Hurricanes to the Sweet 16 in their two previous March Madness appearances. Michigan State is making its 20th consecutive appearance. The Spartans finished lower in the Big Ten standings than usual. They were in a four-way tie for fifth, but they’re still a team that teams don’t want to see in March. Oddsmakers opened the Hurricanes as -2-point favorites versus the Spartans, while the game’s total opened at 125. The ‘Canes are -1.5-point favorites now and the total is sitting at 126. Last time out for Miami, they were a 78-53 loser as they battled the North Carolina Tar Heels in the ACC Tournament. They failed to cover in the matchup[ as a +8.5-point underdog. The Hurricanes defeated Syracuse in the ACC Tournament second round before North Carolina ousted the Hurricanes in the quarterfinals. Michigan State was a 63-58 loser in its last matchup against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Big Ten Tournament. They failed to cover the +1.5-point spread as underdogs. Michigan State has lost three of the last four games. This is including a five-point loss to Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.

Betting Odds and Trends

Michigan State: Team record: 19-14 SU,17-15 ATS Michigan State is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games Miami: Team record: 21-11 SU,12-19 ATS The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami’s last 5 games Get all of your College Basketball Odds at Bovada Online Sportsbook.