March Madness 2012 Betting: Xavier vs. Notre Dame
Carrie Stroup here with your March Madness 2012 betting and the line for Xavier vs. Notre Dame, which promises to be one of the best games of this tournament. You can get all the updated NCAA Tournament odds at Sportsbook.com and be sure to claim up to $250 in FREE CASH based on an initial deposit. Let’s get started….
Sportsbook.com Line: Notre Dame -2.5
Opening Line: Irish -2.5
After disappointing finishes to their conference tournaments, Xavier and Notre Dame move on to the NCAAs where they will match up Friday night in Greensboro.
Notre Dame had it sights set on a Big East Championship, but shot a woeful 35.8% FG (2-of-17 threes) in a 14-point blowout loss to Louisville in the semifinals. Xavier must have also been feeling good about facing St. Bonaventure in the A-10 championship game, but it shot a horrible 33.9% FG and lost by 11 points. Both of these teams have enough scorers to bounce back, but the Musketeers are not as reliant on the three-ball as the Irish are. And in terms of NCAA Tournament success, these schools are not even close. Xavier has won seven games in the Big Dance over the past four years while Notre Dame has just two NCAA tourney wins in the past eight years.
Xavier is just 1-7-1 ATS (5-4 SU) in its past nine games, but the team has improved in some facets, namely rebounding. The Bonnies killed them on the glass (42-29) in the A-10 final though, something the Musketeers will need to correct against Notre Dame. When Xavier decides to exert energy on the defensive end of the floor, it is a tall task for opponents to score against them. The Musketeers are allowing just 39.8% FG on the season which has been even better (39.5% FG) in the past five games. Offensively, it is the dynamic backcourt of Tu Holloway (17.0 PPG, 5.1 APG) and Mark Lyons (15.5 PPG) that sets the tone. Holloway has been more assertive shooting the basketball lately with 20.8 PPG on 47% FG in his past four games. A big factor in this matchup though, will be 7-foot senior Kenny Frease (9.5 PPG, 6.1 RPG) not getting into foul trouble against Cooley.
Notre Dame is fueled by its heady backcourt of Jerian Grant (12.3 PPG, 4.9 APG) and Eric Atkins (12.2 PPG, 4.1 APG), but the duo had more turnovers (eight) than assists (seven) in the loss to Louisville. The pair is tenacious on defense though, as their ball pressure is a big reason the Irish give up just 61.5 PPG on 41.2% FG this season. The most important player on Notre Dame is PF Jack Cooley (12.4 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 61% FG). He has been up-and-down recently, scoring 18, 2, 27, 9 and 11 points in his past five games. But the whole team is to blame for its recent shooting woes of 56.2 PPG on 39% FG in the past five contests. Senior F Scott Marin (9.5 PPG, 5.7 RPG) continues to struggle from long distance, with an anemic season-long 25.5% 3-pt FG accuracy.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
