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The Kent State Golden Flashes (17-16) and Akron Zips (23-10) meet in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament Championship Game Saturday at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2/ESPN+). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Kent State vs. Akron odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
The 8th-seeded Golden Flashes have been disruptive in Cleveland. They came into the tourney under .500, but upended No. 1 seed Toledo, while topping Bowling Green 73-60 in the semifinals. Kent State ended the regular season 2-4 straight up (SU), while going 0-6 against the spread (ATS), but they’re 2-0 SU/ATS in the tourney, cashing the Under in both outings.
The 2nd-seeded Zips meet their rivals for a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Akron swept the regular-season series, while also covering both of the games. The average margin of victory was 9.5 points per game (PPG), and the Over cashed in both regular-season meetings.
Like Kent State, Akron skidded to the finish line of the regular season. It lost 3 of the final 4 games, while failing to cover 4 straight. The Zips were 1-7 ATS in the final 8 games, too, with the lone cover a win over the Golden Flashes.
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Kent State vs. Akron odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 2 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Kent State +162 (bet $100 to win $162) | Akron -196 (bet $196 to win $100)
- Against the spread: Kent State +4.5 (-110) | Akron -4.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 131.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Kent State vs. Akron picks and predictions
Prediction
Akron 70, Kent State 67
Moneyline
Akron (-196) will cost you nearly 2 times your potential return, and that’s too much risk for not enough reward.
Kent State (+162) has been a problem in this MAC Tournament in his improbable run. While the Zips handled the Golden Flashes quite handily in the regular season, Kent State is playing with a lot of confidence this week.
PASS, and look to the spread instead.
Against the spread
KENT STATE +4.5 (-110) is worth playing, as the No. 8 seed looks to make magic going from worst to first. The Golden Flashes are likely to come up short, but it should be a raucous crowd in Cleveland with the fans of both of these Northeast Ohio schools making for a magical atmosphere.
The underdog is 4-3 ATS in the previous 7 meetings, and you can expect a very close game, perhaps coming down to the final possession, for a chance to go to the NCAA Tournament.
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Over/Under
OVER 131.5 (-110) is the best play on the board in this MAC Tournament Championship.
The Over has cashed in 4 consecutive meetings between these rivals, including 153 combined points in Akron on Feb. 23 in the most recent meeting with a total of just 135.
And while Kent State has cashed the Under in the 2 tourney games, the Over still has a 4-3 edge in the past 7 games dating back to the regular season. The Over is also 4-3 in the past 7 games for Akron, too.
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