South Bracket Predictions - #13 Old Dominion vs. #3 Notre Dame
by Tim Furious
Let me just get this out of the way right now so you’re aware of the bias – I love that this line dropped against Notre Dame! The Old Dominion Monarchs were the best of the Colonial Conference, but they’ve never faced a defense as fierce as Notre Dame’s. To put this mildly, the Monarchs are just 1-6 ATS when playing as an underdog so don’t even pretend like you’re going to side with them on the betting line.
The oddsmakers might as well have strapped a pair of nine-inch stilettos on Notre Dame by lowering this spread, because it is dead sexy to me right now.
To say that Notre Dame ended the season on a hot streak is like saying that Jay Leno is a sad sac of bad jokes and lies. Notre Dame erupted out of obscurity to become a college basketball betting favorite by going 7-1 SU and 8-0 ATS in their last 8 appearances. A 51-53 loss to West Virginia proved that their defense has enough to rattle even the best teams.
Their defense may rank 189 th overall, but to put this in perspective they allowed 52.8 points per game in their last five games. Their opponents were West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, Marquette and UConn so don’t try to make any excuses (except maybe in Seton Hall’s case). Old Dominion manages just 67.5 points per game on average and they’ve played the majority of the season against piss poor teams. They’re just not ready to step on the same floor as Notre Dame.
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#13 Old Dominion Monarchs (26-8) vs. #6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (23-11)
Thursday, March 18 th --- New Orleans Arena --- 12:25pm EST
NCAAB Betting Line: Notre Dame -2.5 (124.5)
Returning to March Madness after a one-season absence is a big, moral victory for Notre Dame. But their showing in the Big East Tournament was enough to fill their betting bandwagon with tons of experts and handicappers. Any time a team can roll out masterful defensive efforts on a consistent basis, you have to be enticed. You just have to be.
Until Notre Dame loses against the college basketball betting line they’re a plucky lower tier team that you can stand safely behind. Old Dominion has enjoyed a season filled with low-end opponents, and against Notre Dame they’re getting a rude awakening.
Furious Free Pick: Notre Dame -2.5 (UNDER)
