Cincinnati vs. Indiana State Prediction: Can Robbie Avila, Sycamores Advance in NIT?
Cincinnati vs. Indiana State Prediction: Can Robbie Avila, Sycamores Advance in NIT?
The Cincinnati Bearcats travel to Terre Haute, Indiana tonight to take on the Indiana State Sycamores in the NIT tournament. Indiana state has beaten SMU and Minnesota in the first two rounds to get to this position, while Cincinnati has beaten San Francisco and Bradley to get here. As Indiana state is the higher seed, they will have homecourt advantage in this game. The Sycamores are 3.5-point favorites in this matchup tonight. Can they cover?
CINCINNATI VS. INDIANA STATE DATE, TIME, AND WHERE TO WATCH
- Date: Tuesday, March 26, 2024
- Start Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
- Where to Watch: ESPN
CINCINNATI VS. INDIANA STATE Pick
Indiana state has had their best season under third-year head coach Josh Schertz this season. Schertz has rebuilt the program in a short time, as Indiana State was not on the map when he joined the program. In just a few short years, Indiana State came unbelievably close to an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Many people thought they should have gotten the last bid over Virginia, but here they are in the NIT. They are not taking it to heart though, as they have blown past the first two rounds of the NIT, scoring 101 points on SMU and beating Minnesota by 12 points. On the other side, Cincinnati had a pretty good season in a tough big 12 conference, but at the end of the day, it was not enough for the committee to give them a spot into the NCAA tournament. They beat Kansas by 20 points in the big 12 conference tournament, but their 12 point loss to Baylor in the next round could not get them a spot. They have also done well in the NIT, surviving their game against San Francisco in overtime, and then beating Bradley in the next round by 17 points. However, both of those games were at home, as they were the higher seed, but they will now be traveling to face Indiana state on the road in a true road game. These two teams have conflicting styles. Indiana state is one of the best offenses in the nation, while Cincinnati has been much more of a defensive team this season. The Bearcats rebound well, and do not give up many easy looks inside the perimeter. They rank 27th in the nation in two point defense and rank 39th in effective field goal percentage allowed. On the other hand, Indiana state is an offensive powerhouse. They rank 18th in offensive efficiency on Kenpom and do not take long to score, as a rank 26th in average possession length on offense. They also rank number one in the country inside the perimeter, making 62.5% of their two point attempts. I foresee the Indiana state offense being too much for Cincinnati to overcome. Indiana state has had very good moments down the later stretch of the season and has blown through the first two rounds of this tournament with a good home court advantage. I am comfortable laying just 3.5 points here on the home team in the spot, as I think Indiana State has a good chance to win the NIT tournament.
CINCINNATI VS. INDIANA STATE Pick
Pick: Indiana State -3.5 (-110) Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds
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Article Author
Ben Rajavuori is a handicapper out of Minneapolis, MN. He has been creating sports content for almost four years now and is an expert in all things NFL, MLB, NBA, UFC, and NCAAB. Ben thrives on diving deep into statistics to find the best angle on every bet. You can follow him on Twitter @WeBeatTheSpread.