(6) Texas vs (11) Northern Iowa ($50 Prize!)
UPDATE: THE WINNER OF THE $50 AMAZON GIFT CARD IS tim*****@yahoo.com CONGRATULATIONS!
Mar 6, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; Northern Iowa Panthers guard Wes Washpun (11) celebrates after hitting the game winning shot at the buzzer to defeat the Evansville Aces in the championship game of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament at Scottrade Center. Northern Iowa defeated Evansville 56-54. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
On Friday, March, 18th at approximately 9:50 P.M. the (6) Texas Longhorns will take on the (11) Northern Iowa in the first round of the 64 team NCAA Basketball Tournament. Texas is (20-12) on the season while Northern Iowa is (21-12). “The Crowd” projects a final score of Northern Iowa 74.1 – Texas 69.6 with an over/under of 143.7. The “Vegas Line” has a final score of Texas 64.8 – Northern Iowa 60.3 with an over/under of 125.
Scoring Margin: Northern Iowa +5.1 (94th) Texas +3.3 (132nd)
Points per game: Texas 71.3 (217th) Northern Iowa 68 (279th)
Points allowed per game: Northern Iowa 62.9 (11th) Texas 68.1 (83rd)
Field Goal Percentage Offense: Northern Iowa 45.7% (87th) Texas 43.2% (211th)
Three Point Percentage: Northern Iowa 37.5% (46th) Texas 33.9% (215th)
Free Throw Percentage: Northern Iowa 75.3% (17th) Texas 66.5% (295th)
Field Goal Percentage Defense: Texas 41.9% (92nd) Northern Iowa 42.2% (103rd)
Turnovers committed per game: Northern Iowa 9.8 (8th) Texas 10.4 (18th)
Turnovers forced per game: Texas 12.5 (189th) Northern Iowa 11.8 (252nd)
Rebounds per game: Texas 34.5 (264th) Northern Iowa 30.1 (342nd)
Assists per game: Northern Iowa 11.9 (263rd) Texas 11.5 (296th)
I went into this game wanting to pick Texas but Northern Iowa has the advantage in most of the major statistical categories. Cameron Ridley, the star big man for Texas, will supposedly only be able to play 15-20 minutes coming off an injury. Northern Iowa has three signature wins over ranked opponents: North Carolina, Iowa State and Wichita State. Texas has signature wins over five ranked teams: UNC, Baylor, Oklahoma, Iowa State, and West Virginia (twice). I like Northern Iowa to pull the upset in a close one.
Note: To be eligible to enter a Crowd’s Line contest you must be over 18 years of age, a resident of the United States/Canada, and submit your score prediction on our prediction tool (blog widget). The winner will be selected according to The Crowd’s Line scoring methodology. If more than one entrant has the same winning score the winner will be selected by random drawing. Only one prize will be awarded per contest and that winner will receive their prize in 5-7 business days.
