Editorial by Graydon Fox

Prizes:

1^st Place: $25 Amazon gift card

2^nd-5^th Place: $10 Amazon gift card

Top 5 winners

1. Jimbo Santi

2. Dale Mccollum

3. Randy Johnson

4. Dave Jagpal

5. Carl Lyle

Overview:

On Thursday, March 22^nd, the #7 seed Texas A&M Aggies will take on the #3 seed Michigan Wolverines in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2018 NCAA Basketball Tournament.

The Crowd:

“The Crowd” projects a final score of Michigan 72.1 – Texas A&M 70.8 with an over/under of 143.0.

Statistics (2017-18 season):

Point differential: Michigan +10.7 > Texas A&M +5.6 PPG

Points per game: Texas A&M 75.3 PPG > Michigan 73.8 PPG

Points allowed per game: Michigan 63.1 PPG > Texas A&M 69.7 PPG

Field Goal Percentage Offense: Michigan 46.7% > Texas A&M 46.0%

Field Goal Percentage Defense: Texas A&M 40.1% > Michigan 42.5%

Three Point Percentage: Michigan 36.4% > Texas A&M 33.1%

Turnovers per game: Michigan 9.2 > Texas A&M 13.6

Rebounds per game: Texas A&M 41.7 > Michigan 33.5

Assists per game: Texas A&M 15.4 > Michigan 14.6

Summary:

Michigan advanced to the Sweet Sixteen after defeating Montana 61-47 and their thrilling 64-63 buzzer beating victory over Houston.  The Wolverines only had three double digit scorers this season but ranked 8^th in scoring defense (63.1 PPG).  Michigan’s turnover rate (9.2 TPG) was the second best in the nation.  The Wolverines are led by Moritz Wagner (14.2 PPG and 7.1 RPG) who shoots 52.5% from the field and 40.3% from three-point range.  Charles Matthews (12.8 PPG and 5.6 RPG) and Muhammed-Ali Abdur-Rahim (12.6 PPG and 3.3 APG) make up the rest of the double-digit scorers.  The Wolverines often play small ball and thus struggle in the rebounding department (33.5 RPG).  Michigan is (5-3) against ranked opponents this season.

Texas A&M edged out Providence 73-69 and shockingly destroyed North Carolina 86-65 to reach the third round of the tournament.  The Aggies are well balanced with five players averaging double figures.  Texas A&M typically dominates teams on the glass and they rank 3^rd in the nation in rebounding (41.7 RPG).  The Aggies are led by Tyler Davis (14.6 PPG and 9.0 RPG) who is their leading scorer.  Admon Gilder (12.4 PPG) and DJ Hogg (11.2 PPG) are the only players on the roster shooting over 33% from three.  Robert Williams (10.3 PPG and 9.3 RPG) is a rebounding machine and proficient shot blocker (2.7 BPG).  The Aggies struggle to shoot the ball from the three-point line (33.1%) and the free throw line (66.4%).  Texas A&M is (5-3) against ranked opponents this season.

Bottom Line:

Michigan has lost only one game this season when they hold the opposition under 70 points.  The Wolverines are the better defensive team, less turnover prone, and shoot the ball with more accuracy from the perimeter.  The key to this game is rebounding where Texas A&M has a major advantage.  If the Wolverines can hold their own on the glass they should advance to the next round.

Contest Rules:

To be eligible to win a prize in any contest at The Crowd’s Line, you must be at least 18 years old and a resident of the United States or Canada. You must also submit your score prediction on our official prediction tool (blog widget), and include a valid email address. Contest winners are determined according to The Crowd’s Line scoring methodology. If more than one entrant has the same winning score, final contest rankings and prize winners are selected by random draw. Only one entry per person is allowed for each contest; multiple entries from a single player will be deemed invalid. There are no prize substitutions or exchanges available from The Crowd’s Line.

All prizes will be sent by e-mail within two weeks after the conclusion of each contest.