The 11th-seeded Syracuse Orange (17-9) meet the No. 3 seed West Virginia Mountaineers (19-9) Sunday in the second round of the Midwest Regional at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Tip-off is set for 5:15 p.m. ET and will air on CBS. Below, we analyze the West Virginia-Syracuse odds and lines, with March Madness NCAA Tournament picks and predictions.
West Virginia handled 14th-seeded Morehead State 84-67, covering as a 13-point favorite Friday. WVU prevailed despite being outrebounded and shooting worse from the field. The Mountaineers did win the turnover battle 18-6.
Mountaineers G Miles McBride dropped a 30-piece on 64.7% shooting (3-for-4 from 3) with 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals in the victory.
Syracuse smoked No. 6-seed San Diego State 78-62 in the round of 64 thanks to Orange SG Buddy Boeheim also serving up a 30-burger by hitting 73.3% of his shots, including seven 3-pointers.
‘Cuse head coach Jim Boeheim’s famed 2-3 zone defense locked up the Aztecs in the first half, holding them to 18 points, and SDSU only made 27.5% of its 3’s for the game.
The Orange have won five straight, going 5-1 overall and ATS vs. the Mountaineers from 2008-12 while both teams were in the Big East and WVU having Bob Huggins as its head coach (since 2007).
West Virginia vs. Syracuse: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Saturday at 9:01 p.m. ET.
- Money line: West Virginia -165 (bet $165 to win $100) | Syracuse +140 (bet $100 to win $140)
- Against the spread/ATS: West Virginia -3.5 (-110) | Syracuse +3.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 147.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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West Virginia vs. Syracuse: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Syracuse 75, West Virginia 72
Money line (ML)
PASS because WVU has played a tougher schedule and has more impressive wins on its resume. I like the Orange to cover the spread but Syracuse (+140) should be north of +150.
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Against the spread (ATS)
LEAN SYRACUSE +3.5 (-110) for a half-unit because the Orange are moving the ball well and creating quality looks for their 3-point specialists. WVU’s defense isn’t that good if it isn’t forcing turnovers.
The Mountaineers are ranked only 195th in defensive effective field-goal shooting and the Orange are 36th in turnover rate, according to Ken Pom.
Also, Syracuse’s 2-3 zone matches up well against a WVU team ranked 284th in 2-point shooting percentage.
Over/Under (O/U)
Both teams should have success on offense because they each have red-hot shooters in Boeheim for ‘Cuse and McBride for WVU. That will help spread the floor for teammates.
Furthermore, I envision the Orange can speed this game up, hit 3-point shots and force WVU into a bit of a shootout. ‘Cuse trying to drag better teams into shootouts would explain its 8-2 O/U record as an underdog.
TAKE OVER 147.5 (-110) for 1 unit.
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