UC Irvine vs. Oregon Free Pick, Betting Odds - March 24
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UC Irvine - Long overshadowed by fellow California schools such as UCLA, USC and Cal, UC Irvine pulled off the biggest upset of the NCAA tournament so far, a 70-64 victory over Kansas State.
"We could have easily come out here tonight against a Big 12 team like a lot of other 14-seeds did and get blown out," Irvine coach Russell Turner said. "But we seemed to gain momentum with this group off of our confidence, and I think that's because we've earned it. And so that's fun, you know."
Oregon - Payton Pritchard scored 19 points, Kenny Wooten protected the rim with four blocks and 12th-seeded Oregon extended its surprising March run by beating No. 5 seed Wisconsin 72-54 Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Predictions
AthlonSports: "Few teams left in the NCAA Tournament are on a bigger roll than these two squads. UC Irvine has won 17 straight games. Oregon has won nine in a row. Both teams are hungry to prove themselves and both are dangerous teams. The edge ultimately goes to the Ducks. Oregon has more quickness, depth, and athleticism than UC Irvine. Injuries were largely responsible for the Ducks' struggles earlier in the season. Now fully healthy, Oregon is playing how everyone expected when it started the season as a Top 25 team. That's ultimately bad news for the Anteaters."
Prediction: Oregon 67, UC Irvine 56
SportsChatPlace: "UC-Irvine was an upset that I had in my bracket and it’s nice to see the Anteaters get that elusive first tournament win. However, Oregon was another upset that I had, and I have this feeling that Oregon is going to keep rolling here after being nothing but money down the stretch, winning the Pac-12 tournament along the way. I also think that the absence of Dean Wade for K-State was a big part of UC-Irvine winning outright, while Oregon has been working with what they’ve had at full strength since Bol Bol went down due to injury. This could have the feel of another homestyle game for UC-Irvine, but I think the Ducks will be up to the task and win this one by 6-8 points, covering the spread in the process."
Action vs. Line Movement
Action was balanced.
Line
The Ducks are a -4.5 favorite in this one.
- Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com