Line on the 2012 NCAA Basketball National Championship Game at Wildcats -6.5
Carrie Stroup here with your line on the 2012 NCAA Basketball National Championship game, which has moved up a half point overnight to -6.5 in favor of the Wildcats. You can bet just about everything at Sportsbook.com – offering up to $250 in FREE CASH when you join here today.
Sportsbook.com Line & Total: Kentucky -6.5 & 137.5
Opening Line & Total: Wildcats -6.5 & 139.5
The 2011-12 season concludes Monday night when the two winningest programs in college basketball history collide as second-seeded Kansas tries to prevent No. 1 Kentucky from winning its first championship since 1998.
When these teams met earlier this year (Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden), the game was tied at halftime, but in the second half, Kansas made just 9-of-32 shots (28%), while Kentucky shot 64% FG, including 6-of-9 threes, to win by 10. But the Jayhawks also showed they could hang with the ‘Cats, outrebounding them 39-34 and forcing 19 turnovers. Kansas continues to play stellar defense in this tourney (59.2 PPG, 35.3% FG) and its big man duo of Thomas Robinson and Jeff Withey will keep this one very tight.
The following betting options were available for Monday night’s NCAA Basketball Championship game…
It isn’t a fluke that Kansas’ NCAA Tournament opponents have had so much trouble putting the ball in the basket. The Jayhawks rank second in the nation in shooting defense (37.9% FG) thanks in part to 5.7 blocks per game (ninth in D-I). Offensively, KU hasn’t been great during this tourney (66.4 PPG on 41.4% FG), but it was able to score 39 points in the second half against an excellent Ohio State defense. For the season, the Kansas offense ranks among the top-30 teams nationally in shooting (47.5% FG, 23rd), rebounding (+5.7 RPG margin, 9th) and passing (15.2 APG, 29th).
PF Thomas Robinson (17.7 PPG, 11.7 RPG) and PG Tyshawn Taylor (16.5 PPG, 4.8 APG) are the primary scorers for the Jayhawks. Robinson had 19 points and eight boards against the Buckeyes, and is averaging 16.4 PPG and 11.6 RPG in the NCAA tourney. A big reason Kansas couldn’t stick with Kentucky earlier this year is because Robinson fouled out, but not before racking up a double-double in just 27 minutes (11 points, 12 rebounds). Taylor scored 22 points in that loss to the Wildcats, driving to the basket with ease and getting to the line 17 times. He shot just 3-of-13 from the field that day though, and has also been ice cold in this tournament, going 0-for-20 from three-point range. He’s coming off a strong Final Four showing (10 points, 9 assists), but he had five turnovers including one in the last five seconds that nearly cost his team the game.
The Jayhawks continue to get great contributions from their other starters. Junior G Elijah Johnson (10.1 PPG, 3.6 APG) has had a great tournament (13.4 PPG), scoring in double-figures in each game and connecting on 10-of-23 threes. Johnson had 13 points and a season-high 10 rebounds versus Ohio State, and he’ll need to hit the glass again facing the high-flying Wildcats. Seven-foot C Jeff Withey (9.1 PPG, 6.3 RPG) has also come on strong in the past three games with 9.0 PPG (10-of-16 FG), 7.0 RPG and a whopping 6.7 BPG. He swatted away seven OSU shots on Saturday. And junior swingman Travis Releford (8.6 PPG, 4.3 RPG) is coming off his best game of the tourney, scoring 15 points on 5-of-7 FG with six rebounds and two steals against the Buckeyes.
Kentucky is 11-4-1 ATS (73%) in its past 16 NCAA Tournament games when favored, and it continues to pile up points, averaging 84.2 PPG on 53.7% FG in this year’s NCAA tourney. These numbers surpass its gaudy season totals of 77.6 PPG (15th in nation) on 49.0% FG (seventh in D-I), while allowing a mere 60.6 PPG (25th in nation) on 37.4% FG, easily the best mark in the country. A good part of this stifling defense is an interior that blocks a nation’s-most 8.5 shots per game and rebounds the basketball at a healthy +6.7 RPG margin (12th in nation).
The Wildcats shot a ridiculous 57.1% FG in Saturday’s 69-61 win over Louisville. Freshman C Anthony Davis (14.4 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 4.6 BPG) was nearly perfect, scoring 18 points (7-of-8 FG), with 14 boards and five blocks. Davis is now averaging 15.2 PPG, 11.6 RPG and 4.6 BPG in the NCAA Tournament, and he posted 14 points, six boards and seven blocks against Kansas in November. Fellow freshman F Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (11.9 PPG, 7.5 RPG) scored just nine points in a foul-plagued 23 minutes on Saturday, but he was outstanding in the previous two contests with 21.5 PPG (56% FG, 14-of-14 FT) and 7.5 RPG. He was also a huge factor against the Jayhawks earlier this year, tallying 12 points, nine boards, four assists and three blocks. The Wildcats’ other key frontcourt player is 6-foot-9 sophomore Terrence Jones (12.4 PPG, 7.2 RPG) who was pretty quiet against Louisville with just six points (3-for-8 FG, 0-for-3 FT). He was much louder against Kansas earlier this season when he scored 15 points (6-of-11 FG) and added seven boards and three blocks.
Kentucky’s backcourt is also excellent, as the team has surpassed 14 turnovers in a game just once in its past 23 contests, tallying 12 games of single-digit turnovers in that span. Freshman PG Marquis Teague (9.9 PPG, 4.8 APG) has 13.2 PPG and 5.2 APG in the tourney and has come a long way since his second career college game against Kansas (three assists, season-high-tying six turnovers). Sophomore SG Doron Lamb (13.5 PPG, 47% 3-pt FG) is the long-range marksman who has eight straight double-figure scoring games. He’s averaging 15.4 PPG, including 9-of-17 threes in the NCAA tourney. Senior SG Darius Miller (10.1 PPG, 48% FG) not only leads through experience, but he hit some huge shots against Louisville, finishing with 13 points (4-of-7 FG, 4-of-4 FT). He’s scoring 13.0 PPG on 58% FG and 17-of-18 FT in the NCAA Tournament so far.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
