UCF vs. Villanova College Basketball Crown Predictions (Saturday)
You don’t have to wait until tonight to watch some college basketball. The College Basketball Crown Tournament has two semi-final matchups on the slate this afternoon.
I reviewed each game and provided analysis and best college basketball bets for UCF vs. Villanova.
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Saturday’s Best College Basketball Crown Bets: UCF vs. Villanova
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
UCF vs. Villanova
The Villanova Wildcats are playing inspired basketball under interim head coach Mike Nardi. The Wildcats have added back-to-back wins over Colorado and USC, and are in the semi-finals of a postseason tournament without Kyle Neptune.
Unfortunately for Nardi, no matter what happens in this tournament, he won’t get the head coaching job at Villanova. They’ve already hired Kevin Willard to take over. That said, this tournament performance should still help him in years to come.
It’s no secret the Wildcats have one of the better offenses in college basketball. They’ve done it behind Eric Dixon, who has scored 23.1 points per game this season. In a 60-59 win over USC, Dixon scored 28 points. He added half of Villanova’s points and willed them to victory.
He’s made for tournaments.
Villanova has added 30% of offensive rebounds, which isn’t super high. However, that number should rise against UCF’s defense, which has allowed 34.3% of offensive rebounds per game. Plus, the UCF Knights have also allowed teams to shoot 52.3% from inside the arc this season.
Conversely, UCF has shot a 49.5% effective field goal percentage. The Knights should keep turnovers down, but it’s unlikely they’ll shoot nearly as well. Plus, UCF has added 32% of offensive rebounds but will face a Villanova defense that has limited opponents to 27.6% of offensive rebounds.
Let’s back Villanova.
Pick: Villanova -3.5 (-110)