The No. 13 seed Vermont Catamounts (28-5) and No. 4 seed Arkansas Razorbacks (25-8) meet Thursday for a West Region first-round game of the NCAA Tournament. Tip-off from KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y., is scheduled for 9:20 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Vermont vs. Arkansas odds and lines, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
The Catamounts blasted UMBC 82-43 in the America East Conference final to clinch the automatic bid. Vermont has won eight in a row while covering six of those outings since a 75-74 overtime loss at Hartford Feb. 14. The Under has cashed in five of its last six games.
The Razorbacks went all the way to the Elite Eight last season, bowing out against eventual champ Baylor. They enter with just one win in their last three outings, however, and are coming off an 82-64 beatdown from Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament — a team that went to the NIT.
See also: Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports
Vermont vs. Arkansas 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 8:45 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Vermont +175 (bet $100 to win $175) | Arkansas -220 (bet $220 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Vermont +4.5 (-107) | Arkansas -4.5 (-115)
- Over/Under (O/U): 138.5 (O: -112 | U: -108)
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Vermont vs. Arkansas odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Arkansas 71, Vermont 69
Money line
Arkansas (-220) will cost you more than two times your potential return, and that’s a little too expensive. Vermont is going to give the Razorbacks all they can handle in this one, but expect the favorite to pull this one out by the skin of their teeth.
AVOID.
Against the spread
VERMONT +4.5 (-107) is worth playing in the nightcap in the Buffalo pod, as the Catamounts are a very good shooting team.
UVM shot 48.6% from the field in the regular season, ranking 15th overall in the country. On the other side of the court, the Catamounts allowed just 61.5 PPG to rank 20th defensively. However, that’s against rather smallish lineups in the AEC.
Arkansas is not going home from this tournament as the result of an upset here, but it is certainly going to have to work for this win harder than many expect.
Over/Under
The OVER 138.5 (-112) is the play here.
UVM enjoyed a 12-game Over stretch at one point this season from Dec. 10-Feb. 5, and the Over is 16-7 in the past 23 games overall.
Arkansas has also cashed the Over in six consecutive games, allowing 73 or more points in five of its last six outings. Look for plenty of points here.
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