NightCap's Saturday NCAA March Madness Plays!!

NightCap424 · #1 03-18-2011, 11:26 PM

Went 5-1 last night winning on 5* VCU plus the points and on the ML. Chris Wright slowed down G'Town and was horrible from the field. All of that was expected since you don't just get your shot, stamina, and legs back in one game. His technical foul late in the 2nd half summed up the game....on to Saturday.

For anyone who watched Temple play on Thursday, don't read into it. Penn State slowed the tempo down and controlled the pace of play. Temple hasn't had much of an issue with that this season, thus their struggles from the field were evident. In case you didn't notice, Temple only had 10 assists to 9 turnovers on Thursday. They weren't aggressive with the dribble drive and the inside game was non existent. Lavoy Allen was a ghost all night. He played 40 minutes and manged 3 points on 1-5 shooting. His rebounding was critical but I expect more of an offensive Allen on Saturday. Temple has quietly had a very successful season and have put themselves in harms way multiple times. Temple is very strong on the offensive end. They rank 33rd in the nation in assists per game while shooting 45% from the field. They only average 16 turnovers per game which ranks them in the top 15 nationally. Defensively they limit the open looks and don't allow second chances. They allowed Taylor Battle to get more open looks than I expected but when the game was on the line they found a way to get it done and that's what good teams do.

Sure, San Diego State won by 18, but it wasn't the kind of game to get excited about from a #2 seed. They shot 22 three point shots and were slow to get back in transition on multiple occasions in the first half. Besides Devon Beitzel, Northern Colorado didn't have much to base their play on. SDST seemed jittery early and didn't have the usual flow of their offense. Temple is a much better team than Northern Colorado and will be there to take advantage of the mistakes. This is still a pressure spot for SDST as a 2 seed and I fully expect Temple to take advantage of that today. Other than beating Gonzaga and St. Mary's, please tell me who SDST has competed with and beaten with a tall, talented swing offense that Temple possesses? The key for Temple will be neutralizing Kawhi Leonard's ability to dominate the paint. I really think Lavoy Allen is a great match-up against Leonard and posses a size and ability that Leonard has not seen all year. Athletically these teams are very similar and are able to push the ball. Free throw shooting will be a big factor and I have to give the edge to the gritty guards of Temple late in games. I fully expect Fernandez to get off to a better start and find his counterparts on the wings. I think Temple matches up very well with San Diego St. and I honestly feel Temple has a great chance to win this straight up. San Diego St. is 0-6 against the spread in a neutral court games where the total is 120 to 129.5 over the past three seasons. SDST is 5-11 ATS in their last 16 neutral site games as a favorite.

5***Temple Owls +6

1***Temple Owls +210

smaller plays:
1***Northwestern +4.5 (NIT)
1***Richmond -4
1***Wisconsin -2.5
1***Wisconsin/KSU under 126
1***Charleston +4.5 (NIT)
1***Pittsburgh -7.5
1***BC/Northwestern under 142 (NIT)

Best of luck everyone!

NC424