The No. 9 seed TCU Horned Frogs (21-12) and No. 1 seed Arizona Wildcats (32-3) tangle Sunday in a South Region second-round game at Viejas Arena in San Diego. Tip-off is slated to tip off at 9:40 p.m. ET (on TBS). Below, we look at the TCU vs. Arizona odds and lines, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
TCU bludgeoned eighth-seeded Seton Hall 69-42 Friday in the first round. The Horned Frogs held the Pirates to 28.8% from the floor. Albeit with a couple games against third-ranked Kansas, TCU had allowed 69.3 points per game over its previous four outings. Against the Pirates, the Frogs were also a plus-13 on the boards (39-26).
Arizona defeated No. 16 seed Wright State 87-70 in its first-rounder. The Wildcats – who are No. 2 the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports – heads into Sunday’s game having won seven in a row and 16 of their last 17. The ‘Cats, who have averaged 85.4 points per game since March 1, are seeking their first Sweet Sixteen appearance since 2017.
TCU vs. Arizona odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 5:27 p.m. ET.
- Money line: TCU +360 (bet $100 to win $360) | Arizona -500 (bet $500 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): TCU +9.5 (-110) | Arizona -9.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 145.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
[tipico]
TCU vs. Arizona odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Arizona 79, TCU 68
Money line
PASS.
Arizona (-500) will win, but backing a 5-to-1 favorite is too risky.
Against the spread
Arizona failed to cover a 21.5-point spread against Wright State in the opening round. The last four times the Wildcats have logged an ATS loss, they have covered the next time out.
Texas Christian likes to get its points inside, which plays into a sizable Arizona advantage here. UA’s pace (a top-10 figure in the nation) combined with TCU’s looseness with the ball (bottom-50 turnover rate) and the Wildcats’ ability to get to the line makes for too many potential runs that get away from the Frogs.
TAKE ARIZONA -9.5 (-110).
Over/Under
The Over is 5-0 in the Horned Frogs’ last five games after allowing less-than-50 points in their previous game. The Over is 6-0 in Arizona’s last six games following an ATS loss.
The UA advantages stated above — combined with solid offensive rebounding for both sides — make for more of a lean toward 150 than 140. But this total has been on the rise so far Sunday. Consider a partial-unit play on the OVER 145.5 (-110).
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