Welcome back to another Sunday of college basketball picks and predictions. It’s the final day of the regular season while mid-major conference tournaments are in full swing. Let’s find some winners as we dive into three intriguing matchups.
The Atlantic Sun championship game between Lipscomb and North Alabama headlines our college basketball picks today. Plus, we dish out predictions for Houston Christian vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the Southland Conference tournament and then an American Athletic Conference matchup featuring North Texas vs. Temple.
Note that all betting lines are accurate as of this writing, but shop around for the best odds. Enjoy these college basketball picks and predictions for Sunday, March 9’s game North Alabama vs. Lipscomb.
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Sunday's Best College Basketball Bets: North Alabama vs. Lipscomb
(Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook)
North Alabama vs. Lipscomb
The Atlantic Sun Conference tournament wraps up Sunday with an intriguing championship game. After surviving in overtime in the semifinals, No. 1 seed Lipscomb will host No. 2 seed North Alabama for this title matchup. Let's see which team will punch its ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
Lipscomb and North Alabama split their two regular-season matchups - each winning at home. The most recent one came less than a month ago when Lipscomb won by 12 points in the same arena where today's game will be played. That's notable for a few reasons.
The Bisons definitely get a boost by hosting this championship matchup. They've won seven straight games at home by an average of 15.4 PPG. Lipscomb has also won by double-digits in five of its last six home games, including that aforementioned victory over North Alabama.
North Alabama, meanwhile, went 5-4 on the road in league play this year. The Lions are also just 2-5 against the spread (ATS) as road underdogs this season, failing to cover three straight. It's a tough spot having to play a title game in a true road environment - especially after they were at home for the first two rounds of the conference tournament.
This is Lipscomb's championship to lose. The Bisons have been the best in the conference all season. They're the only Atlantic Sun team among the NET's top 100. Their offense ranks top 25 nationally in effective field-goal percentage, turnover rate, two-point shooting, and free-throw percentage (per KenPom).
ASUN Player of the Year Jacob Ognacevic is a mismatch and will be against North Alabama's smaller frontcourt here. Senior guards Will Pruitt, Joe Anderson, and Gyasi Powell are all averaging double-digits as well. Ognacevic is the star but the supporting cast is plenty dangerous. The Bisons also shot 39.1% from three in conference play.
Lipscomb's defense is elite as well. It led the league in points allowed per game (67.2), opposing field-goal percentage (42.6%), opposing three-point percentage (30.9%), and opposing free-throw percentage (66.9%). The Bisons also rank first in the ASUN in defensive rebounding rate.
North Alabama could have issues offensively to keep this one close. The Lions have some talented scorers, led by Jacari Lane, and boast the best offensive turnover rate in the entire country. However, they struggle to shoot it. The offense ranks ninth in the ASUN in three-point shooting percentage, seventh in two-point shooting, and eighth in free-throw shooting.
Furthermore, Lipscomb comes in with revenge on its mind. The Bisons lost at home to North Alabama in the conference tournament a year ago. They should be motivated to avenge that loss with a convincing home victory today to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time under head coach Lennie Acuff.
Pick: Lipscomb -4.5 (-120)
