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The No. 15 seed Robert Morris Colonials (26-8) take on the second-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide (25-8) in Friday afternoon East Region action of the NCAA Tournament. The opening tip from Rocket Arena in Cleveland will be at 12:40 p.m. ET (truTV). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s college basketball odds around the Robert Morris vs. Alabama odds, and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions.
Robert Morris made the field as the champion of the Horizon League. Last playing in the March 11 title game of the Horizon League Tournament — an 89-78 win as a 4-point favorite vs. Youngstown State — the Colonials head into the national brackets on a 10-game winning streak. RMU is adept at getting offensive rebounds and in getting frequent trips to the free-throw line.
Alabama, which made the field as an at-large from the SEC, was the preseason No. 2 in theUSA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll, and the Crimson Tide has been highly regarded all season. UA owns the fastest tempo numbers in NCAA-I, and its 91.1 points-per-game average ranks first in the nation. Alabama last played Friday, when it was ousted from the SEC Tournament by 3-point-favorite Florida 104-82.
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Robert Morris vs. Alabama odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 5 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Robert Morris +1650 (bet $100 to win $1,650) | Alabama -10000 (bet $10,000 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Robert Morris +22.5 (-118) | Alabama -22.5 (-102)
- Over/Under (O/U): 165.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Robert Morris vs. Alabama picks and predictions
Prediction
Alabama 96, Robert Morris 72
PASS; no interest.
Against the spread
Robert Morris has been tabbed as a double-digit underdog 5 times this season, and the Colonials have gone 1-4 ATS.
RMU has not played a Quad I game since its season opener, an 87-59 loss to a slow-tempo West Virginia squad Nov. 4.
Alabama, which scored 109 points in its tournament opener last March, is quite good in defending the perimeter, getting to the offensive glass and generating looks at the free-throw line. Those factors should loom large enough to give UA enough probability of getting this contest to a 25-point cushion or more.
TAKE THE CRIMSON TIDE -22.5 (-102).
Over/Under
The Over is 3-1 across UA’s last 4 games. And the Over went 3-1 in the Tide’s first 4 tourney games last March.
In the Horizon League title game, RMU and Youngstown State — a fast-paced five — did a fly-by on a total of 138.
FanDuel Sportsbook offers a bit more value on the outlay here. BACK THE OVER 166.5 (-106). The lean here is slight: Consider a partial-unit play.
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