Exciting NCAA Tournament Has Nova as Top Seed Remaining
Villanova is the highest ranking seed left in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. Virginia lost to Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) in the opening round. It is the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history. The 74-54 loss represents the time a team seeded 16th has beaten a number one seed.
To make matters worse for the Cavs, they were the OVERALL Number one Seed.
Villanova has that distinction now as they take on 9th-seeded Alabama in the Round of 32. The Cats’ and the Tide will kick-off Saturday action at 12:10 pm EST on CBS.
Oddsmakers have the Wildcats as 11-point favorites. The total is at 148.
Villanova crushed Radford 87-61 on Thursday at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. The Crimson Tide defeated No. 8 Virginia Tech 86-83 on Thursday.
Villanova captured the program’s second national championship in 2016. Last year, Villanova was ousted by Wisconsin in the second round despite being the top overall seed.
Offense Ruled the Day for Villanova in Opening Round of NCAA Tournament
The Wildcats shot 60 percent from the floor and were deadly behind the arc. They were 31 of 52 overall from the field. They knocked down 14 shots from beyond the 3-point line. It was the 20th time this season that Villanova converted at least a dozen 3-pointers.
Even more impressive than their offense was the Wildcats’ defense. They held the Highlanders to 34 percent shooting.
Villanova placed six players in double figures. National Player of the Year candidate Jalen Brunson led the way with 16 points. Offense isn’t always the catalyst. When the Wildcats are clicking well, it always starts with defense.
The Tide Are Hot at the Right Time
Alabama won two games in the SEC Tournament just to qualify for an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. It paid off with a three-point win over Virginia Tech. Alabama is in search of their first trip to the Sweet 16 since 2004.
Guard Collin Sexton scored 22 of his 25 points in the second half against the Hokies. The Tide won its first NCAA Tournament game since 2006. John Petty contributed six 3-pointers and 20 points. Both these players are freshmen and are laying a great foundation for Avery Johnson’s club.
The task now for Alabama is to find a way to slow down Villanova. How do they do it? Time will tell.
| Name |
Assists |
Turnovers |
Ratio |
| ALA |
12.71 |
14.23 |
0.89 |
| VILLA |
16.77 |
10.43 |
1.61 |
| Name |
Offense |
Defense |
Total |
| ALA |
10.03 |
25.97 |
36 |
| VILLA |
9.31 |
26.23 |
35.54 |
| Name |
Offense |
Defense |
Differential |
| ALA |
46.21 |
41.66 |
4.55 |
| VILLA |
50.65 |
43.16 |
7.49 |
| Name |
Record |
Home |
Away |
ATS |
ATS Home |
ATS Away |
Offense |
Defense |
Diff |
| Overall |
20-15 |
14-5 |
6-10 |
19-15 |
10-8 |
9-7 |
72.74 |
70.34 |
2.40 |
| Last 10 |
4-6 |
1-2 |
3-4 |
5-5 |
1-2 |
4-3 |
71.40 |
75.50 |
-4.10 |
| vs Conf |
10-11 |
6-3 |
4-8 |
12-9 |
6-3 |
6-6 |
69.38 |
68.81 |
0.57 |
| Name |
Record |
Home |
Away |
ATS |
ATS Home |
ATS Away |
Offense |
Defense |
Diff |
| Overall |
31-4 |
20-1 |
11-3 |
22-12-1 |
15-6 |
7-6-1 |
87.06 |
70.60 |
16.46 |
| Last 10 |
8-2 |
6-0 |
2-2 |
6-4 |
5-1 |
1-3 |
85.20 |
71.20 |
14.00 |
| vs Conf |
17-4 |
11-1 |
6-3 |
12-9 |
9-3 |
3-6 |
87.67 |
75.14 |
12.53 |
| Title |
Stat |
Rank |
Stat |
Rank |
| Away Team Overall Scoring vs Home Team Overall Defense |
72.74 |
163 |
70.60 |
103 |
| Home Team Overall Scoring vs Away Team Overall Defense |
87.06 |
1 |
70.34 |
99 |
| Team |
record |
ATS |
O/U |
AVG |
AVG ½ |
FG% |
REB |
3PT |
steals |
| Alabama |
1-0 |
1-0 |
0-1 |
77.00 |
29.00 |
56.82 |
37.00 |
9/15 |
10.00 |
| Villanova |
0-1 |
0-1 |
0-1 |
55.00 |
26.00 |
31.91 |
27.00 |
5/16 |
5.00 |
| Date |
Away |
away score |
Home |
home score |
line |
ATS |
Total |
O/U |
FG% Edge |
Reb Edge |
3PT Edge |
Away Half Score |
Home Half Score |
Away FG% |
Home FG% |
Away Rebounds |
Home Rebounds |
Away Three Pointers |
Home Three Pointers |
Away Steals |
Home Steals |
| Nov 16, 2012 |
VILLA |
55 |
ALA |
77 |
-3.5 |
ALA |
132.5 |
U |
ALA |
ALA |
ALA |
26 |
29 |
31.9 |
56.8 |
27 |
37 |
5/16 |
9/15 |
5 |
10 |
| Alabama is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games |
| Alabama is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Alabama’s last 21 games |
| Villanova is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games |
| Villanova is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games |
| The total has gone OVER in 13 of Villanova’s last 16 games |
| Date |
Opponent |
score |
Result |
line |
Total |
ATS Result |
field goal percentage |
free throw percentage |
three pointers |
Location |
| Mar 15, 2018 |
VATEC |
86-83 |
W |
2.5 |
141 |
W/O |
60.00 |
66.67 |
8 |
A |
| Mar 10, 2018 |
KENTY |
63-86 |
L |
4.5 |
139.5 |
L/O |
37.93 |
73.33 |
8 |
A |
| Mar 9, 2018 |
AUBRN |
81-63 |
W |
6.5 |
152.5 |
W/U |
50.00 |
70.00 |
8 |
A |
| Mar 8, 2018 |
TEXAM |
71-70 |
W |
3.5 |
138.5 |
W/O |
47.46 |
68.75 |
4 |
A |
| Mar 3, 2018 |
TEXAM |
66-68 |
L |
5 |
141 |
W/U |
37.50 |
61.29 |
5 |
A |
| Date |
Opponent |
score |
Result |
line |
Total |
ATS Result |
field goal percentage |
free throw percentage |
three pointers |
Location |
| Mar 15, 2018 |
RADFD |
87-61 |
W |
-22.5 |
138.5 |
W/O |
59.62 |
78.57 |
14 |
H |
| Mar 10, 2018 |
PROV |
76-66 |
W |
-13 |
143.5 |
L/U |
43.75 |
78.57 |
9 |
H |
| Mar 9, 2018 |
BUTLR |
87-68 |
W |
-8.5 |
150.5 |
W/O |
47.54 |
88.24 |
14 |
H |
| Mar 8, 2018 |
MARQ |
94-70 |
W |
-11.5 |
160.5 |
W/O |
56.90 |
76.47 |
15 |
H |
| Mar 3, 2018 |
GTOWN |
97-73 |
W |
-19 |
155 |
W/O |
57.38 |
100.00 |
14 |
H |
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