brody25@outlook.com 
We’re down to only 16 teams that are all striving for an NCAA Championship. If you’ve been watching, you know just how crazy of a March this has been. There are 4 double-digit seeds still remaining, along with #1 Illinois getting eliminated last round. This season has been wild, and the way this tournament is going makes perfect sense. Nonetheless, enjoy my article, March Madness: Sweet 16 – 3/27 Game Previews!
March Madness: Sweet 16 – 3/27 Game Previews #8 LOYOLA CHICAGO VS #12 OREGON STATE
Loyola Chicago (26-4; 16-2 MVC) takes on Oregon State (19-12; 10-10 PAC 12) on Saturday, March 27th, at 2:40 pm on CBS
Loyola Chicago comes off an upset win that nobody saw coming, defeating #1 Illinois 71-58. The Ramblers showed why they were the #1 defense in the country, as they forced 17 turnovers and held one of the most potent offenses in the country to only 58 points. This was a super impressive display of defense, and it’s how they’ve won all season.
The Ramblers were led by senior big man, Cameron Krutwig. He helped Loyola in many ways, dropping 19 PTS 12 REB 5 AST, and got it done on the defensive end with 4 STL. He was all over the place and put on a show! Krutwig got some great contributions from his teammates, Marquise Kennedy, and Lucas Williamson, who both added 14 PTS apiece.
Oregon State has pretty much came out of nowhere, and can be on one of the craziest runs in a long time. They came into the post-season 14-12, where their hot streak started. They have not lost yet in the postseason, winning the PAC-12 Championship, beating UCLA and Oregon who are both in the Sweet 16 as well, and then taking out #5 Tennessee and #4 Oklahoma State. They have been the definition of anything is possible, and it has been a blast watching them along the way.
The Beavers were in control all game against Cade Cunningham and company. Their leading scorer, who has been their guy all season, Ethan Thompson, had himself a game. He scored 26 PTS and grabbed 7 REB. Thompson hit 15 out of 16 free-throws, which was where a lot of his points came from. His gameplan was to pound the rock and draw fouls, and it worked out perfectly for him. His teammates came through with solid help, as Maurice Calloo and Jarod Lucas both dropped 15 PTS each.
Loyola Chicago has one sure path to victory for this game. They need to keep playing that stingy defense that is ranked #1 in the country. Forcing turnovers maximized their possessions and led to some easy buckets in a game where buckets aren’t easy to come by. Oregon State is a deep team, so the Ramblers have to focus on playing great team defense, as anyone in the lineup can pop off at any time.
Oregon State must execute perfectly against this Loyola Chicago defense. Illinois couldn’t even get anything going, and they are a top offensive team in the country. They executed a great gameplan last time, which was getting as many attempts at the FT line as possible, and I think that could work against Loyola as well. ORST is a great FT shooting team and getting to the charity stripe can get them easy points and get some of the Ramblers’ best players in foul trouble.
Betting Odds:
Loyola Chicago -7 (18-9-1 ATS)
-280 ML
Oregon State +7 (20-9-1 ATS)
+230 ML
O/U 125
Betting Trends:
*LOY is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games overall
*LOY is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following an ATS win
*LOY is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games following a straight-up win
*ORST is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a straight-up win
*ORST is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games
*ORST Over is 7-1 in their last 8 games overall
March Madness: Sweet 16 – 3/27 Game Previews #1 BAYLOR VS #5 VILLANOVA
Baylor (24-2; 13-1 BIG 12) takes on Villanova (18-6; 11-4 Big East) on Saturday, March 27th, at 5:15pm on CBS
Baylor a very solid win over #9 Wisconsin. The Badgers were the most experienced team in the tournament and they were built perfectly for it, but Baylor was well prepared. Baylor was very efficient from beyond the arc, hitting 8 3’s and shooting an impressive 47%. Holding on to the ball was a huge reason they came out with the win, as they only turned it over 4 times, to Wisconsin’s 13 TO. This Baylor squad is locked and loaded with their eyes on the prize in this tournament.
Jared Butler, Davion Mitchell, and Matt Mayer all had 16 PTS, heavily contributing to the Bears’ win. The third member of the big 3, MaCio Teague, had an off game, shooting 3-11. What makes the Bears so good is that even if one of their stars aren’t performing well, someone else on the team is there to pick up the slack.
Villanova has had a slightly easier ride to the Sweet 16 than most teams, taking out the #12 and #13 seeds along the way. Although every team that enters this tournament is tough, they technically had to play against the two lowest seeds out of all the teams remaining. They come off a blowout win over #13 North Texas, winning it 84-61.
There were 4 Wildcats who scored in double figures against North Texas. Their star, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, dropped a team high 18 PTS, along with 6 REB and 6AST. JRE did it all to help them advance to the Sweet 16. Jermaine Samuels and Justin Moore helped out as well, scoring 15 PTS apiece. Nova has been under-looked so far this tournament and they are ready to make some noise in this matchup.
Baylor needs to keep up with their high powered offense, which is ranked #4 in the country, to try and create a scoring gap. Baylor also has a very good defense that was put on display against Wisconsin, allowing only 63 PTS. They have played perfectly so far this tournament and they don’t need to change anything around to win this game.
Nova is up against their toughest test all season by far, but that doesn’t mean they can’t overcome it. Although they still don’t have their best player, Collin Gillespie, they didn’t make it to the Sweet 16 by an accident. This team is well-coached, gritty, and has all the intangibles needed to win this game. They will have to share the ball well and limit Baylor’s Big 3 to minimal production if they want to have a shot at advancing to the Elite 8. The Wildcats seem to be more ready than ever, this is going to be an exciting one!
Betting Odds:
Baylor -7.5 (16-10 ATS)
-320 ML
Villanova +7.5 (13-10-1 ATS)
+260 ML
O/U 141.5
Betting Trends:
*BAY is 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games following an ATS win
*BAY Over is 6-0 in their last 6 games following an ATS win
*BAY Over is 12-2 in their last 14 games overall
*VILL is 3-0-1 ATS in their last 4 games as an underdog
*VILL is 4-0-1 ATS in their last 5 games vs a team with a winning record
*VILL Over is 4-1 in their last 5 games following a 20+ point win
March Madness: Sweet 16 – 3/27 Game Previews #3 ARKANSAS VS #15 ORAL ROBERTS
Arkansas (24-6; 11-2 SEC) matches up against Oral Roberts (18-10; 10-5 Summit) on Saturday, March 27th, at 7:25pm on TBS
Arkansas is coming into this game off of a nail-biter, taking out #6 Texas Tech 68-66. They won this game by just being a little bit more efficient from the floor, shooting 42%. This game could have been blown open if they shot better from 3, only converting on 23.5% of 3 point attempts.
The starting lineup contributed to almost all of their points, as the bench only scored 7 points. Justin Smith led the Razorbacks in scoring with 20 PTS. Davonte Davis and NBA Prospect Moses Moody had the same exact stat line, adding 15 PTS 6 REB and 1 AST each. The Razorbacks have a great starting line-up but I believe they need a little bit more production from their bench if they want to make it any further in the tournament.
Oral Roberts in the Sweet 16, who woulda thought? They have won their last 7 games, upsetting #2 Ohio State and #7 Florida on their way here. ORU is a straight offensive team, showing that their top 15 offense can get it done at the highest level. They dropped in 10 3’s against Florida, which helped them edge the Gators.
ORU’s dynamic duo came to play once again. The NCAA’s leading scorer, Max Abmas, dropped 26 PTS against Florida, and his partner, Kevin Obanor, upped him by dropping 28 PTS. Obanor ended with a double-double, grabbing 11 REB, and hit 4 3’s in the contest. These two are the deadliest duo in the tournament by far, as they both have scored 20+ PTS in the last two rounds. They usually have around half of their teams’ points, and although it is great to watch them kill it, one can only wonder what will happen if 1 of the 2 is stopped.
Arkansas has had a solid overall tournament thus far, and they can continue that with a solid win over Oral Roberts. The key to this one is for the Razorbacks need to limit ORU’s duo and take as many possessions away from those two as possible. Focusing on trapping them or possibly double-teaming them might have to happen at some point, as nobody else on ORU has scored more than 10 points in the last 2 games.
Oral Roberts can only win this game one way, and that’s with their offense, specifically, with Abmas and Obanor. These two have been sensational all tournament, and they have to continue to do so if they want to keep advancing. Outside of these two, there isn’t much scoring help, so it’s critical that they are at the top of their game. The only real gameplan here is to keep feeding Abmas and Obanor and let them go to work. They can draw the defense and let their teammates make some plays, but even then, they need to go off again in order to advance.
Betting Odds:
Arkansas -11.5 (19-9-1 ATS)
-650 ML
Oral Roberts +11.5 (16-9-AST)
+475 ML
Betting Trends:
*ARK is 8-1 ATS in their last 9 games vs a team with a winning record
*ARK Under is 4-0 in their last 4 games overall
*ARK Under is 4-0 in their last 4 NCAA Tourney games as a favorite
*ORU is 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games overall
*ORU is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games following an ATS win
*ORU Over is 4-0 in their last 4 Saturday games
March Madness: Sweet 16 – 3/27 Game Previews #2 HOUSTON VS #11 SYRACUSE
Houston (26-3; 14-3 American) takes on Syracuse (18-9; 9-7 ACC) on Saturday, March 27th, at 9:55 pm on TBS
Houston is coming into this contest off of a crazy comeback win over #10 Rutgers. The Cougars were down 10 with 5 minutes left and made big shots and got big stops down the stretch, ultimately avoiding the upset. They did not have a good game by any means, but they came up clutch when they needed to, and in a win or go home setting, it’s all about finding ways to win.
The Cougars were lead by their start player, Quentin Grimes. He had a near double-double, dropping a game-high 22 PTS and 9 REB, also hitting 5 threes. Senior guard, DeJon Jarreau had a big contribution as well, adding 17 PTS and 5 REB for Houston. Grimes has been their guy all season, and he came up big for the Cougars once again. Houston looks to get off to an early start this game so they don’t have to play catch-up all game again.
Syracuse has been on an awesome run, and I don’t think anyone expected them to get here. The Orange took out #3 West Virginia in the Round of 32. Syracuse came out of it by the skin of their teeth, winning 75-72. They were simply more efficient than WVU, shooting 52% from the field and 45% from 3.
Syracuse is led by none other than the coach’s son, Buddy Boeheim. Usually in this situation, you would say he’s only playing because he is the coach’s son, but this is not the scenario. This kid is a certified bucket. He dropped a game-high 25 against WVU, hitting 6 threes to go with it. He had help from the rest of his starting lineup as well, 3 of them scoring 12 PTS each. Syracuse has been rolling through this tournament on their high horse, upsetting every team in their path.
Houston has to clean it up this time around to avoid getting upset, as Rutgers was a few plays away from winning. They can start with making sure Boeheim doesn’t get hot, because he is very hard to stop when he gets going. If anyone can lock a player down, it’s Houston, as they have the 2nd best defense in the country. As long as they stay true to that, it should be smooth sailing from there.
Syracuse is looking to continue this hot streak of upsets. They don’t have a great defense, so they need to keep this offense cooking. Look to get Boeheim involved out of the gate to open up good looks for his teammates. Syracuse also needs to keep that Houston offense in check, so they need to make sure Grimes and Jarreau are kept at bay. If they can do this, The Orange is in a good position to continue to the Elite 8.
Betting Odds:
Houston -6.5 (19-9 ATS)
-280 ML
Syracuse +6.5 (14-13 ATS)
+230 ML
O/U 140.5
Betting Trends:
*HOU is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games on Saturday
*HOU is 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games as a neutral site favorite
*HOU Under is 11-3 in their last 14 Saturday games
*SYR is 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games overall
*SYR is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games following an ATS win
*SYR is 6-0 in their last 6 NCAA Tourney games as an underdog
Thank you for checking out my article, March Madness: Sweet 16 – 3/27 Game Previews! This has easily been the craziest March I’ve ever seen. There are 4 double-digit seeds in the Sweet 16, which I can’t say I’ve ever seen. Saturday’s games are all great contests and there are even more opportunities for upsets! Nonetheless, I hope you enjoyed and found this information useful!
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