NCAA Tournament Elite Eight: (1) Baylor (25-2) vs (3) Arkansas (25-6) prediction and college basketball game preview.
Baylor vs Arkansas Broadcast
Date: Monday, March 29
Game Time: 9:57 pm ET
Venue: Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN
Network: CBS
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Baylor vs Arkansas Game Preview
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Why Arkansas Will Win
Arkansas didn’t play well and it still won.
It took a missed Oral Roberts shot at the buzzer to survive 72-70, but once again the Hogs showed the mettle to keep fighting back.
Yes, ORU was a 15-seed, but is you hit 1-of-9 from three in the Sweet 16 and move on, you did something right.
The defense clamped down hard in the second half as the Golden Eagle outside shooters started to struggle, and the rebounds kept going Arkansas’ way.
It’s almost as if the Hogs haven’t quite turned it loose yet. It’s one of the nation’s highest-scoring teams, and while it’s not great at shooting the three on a consistent basis, it’s certainly not all that bad.
This is the game against Baylor to get running, match the up-and-down style, and hope that the ability to crash the boards hard, get points in transition, and hit the late free throws will be enough.
And if the Hogs get down, no big whoop. It’s what they do.
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Why Baylor Will Win
Baylor didn’t play well and it still won.
The Bears weren’t as bad as Arkansas was from three against Oral Roberts, but it was close. They hit just 3-of-19 from the outside in the 62-51 win over Villanova, but the only realistic way they were going to lose was if they got bombed on from three.
The Baylor defense stepped up huge, holding the Wildcats to just 3-of-17 from the outside and gave up a mere 21 second half points. The key? Turnovers.
Baylor took the ball away 16 times, was +10 in turnover margin, and the transition game and extra chances – the Bears 13 more shots – made all the difference. Arkansas isn’t sloppy with the ball, but it’s good for double-digit giveaways.
What’s Going To Happen
These two offenses are going to heat back up.
Villanova and Oral Roberts were lousy this season at guarding the three, and yet Baylor and Arkansas, respectively, couldn’t do a thing from the outside. That’s about to change as these two trade haymakers for a full 40 minutes in the type of up-and-down offensive show that’s been missing throughout the tournament.
The two former Southwest Conference brothers will each go on scoring runs, they’ll each look like they’re in control at times, and in the end, Arkansas won’t be able to get over the hump in a wild late comeback attempt.
Expect fun.
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Baylor vs Arkansas Prediction, Line
Baylor 78, Arkansas 71
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Line: Baylor -6.5, o/u: 149.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 2
Must See Rating: 5
5: Godzilla
1: Kong
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