Foreign Players Making an Impact
The NCAA Tournament South Region has a little bit of everything with the No. 1 overall seed in Alabama and the only double-digit seed remaining. Princeton, a No. 15 seed, has already taken out Pac-12 tournament champion Arizona and Missouri of the SEC to wreak havoc with those making March Madness predictions.
Creighton and San Diego State, despite disappointing endings in their respective conference tournaments, should not be overlooked. San Diego State draws Alabama on Friday while Creighton tries to end the run by the Ivy League champions.
This is a rarity with three of the four teams in the regional semifinals hailing from outside the Power-5 conferences. That is the first time that happened since 2006 when regional champion George Mason (Colonial Athletic Association) was joined by UConn (Big East) and Wichita State (Missouri Valley Conference) along with Washington of the Pac-12, the only Power-5 conference team to make it to the Sweet 16 in that bracket.
In the same tournament, another Pac-12 team (UCLA) was joined in the Oakland Region by West Coast Conference power Gonzaga, Conference USA champion Memphis and Bradley, an at-large team out of the Missouri Valley Conference.
There is another story angle worth pursuing – and that is that each team has at least one player from outside the United States playing a key role.
According to the college basketball predictions, Alabama (+375) has the best overall odds when it comes to winning the national championship. Creighton is sixth at +1000, followed by San Diego State (+4000) and Princeton at +15000.
The Crimson Tide are the overwhelming favorite at -130 to win the regional title. Creighton (+175), San Diego State (+600) and Princeton (+3300) will look to defy the NCAA basketball odds by ending the title hopes of Alabama.
Here is a look at the top foreign players still playing in the South Region as they could have a say in how the NCAA picks play out.
🏀 Sweet Sixteen Alert: San Diego State vs. Alabama!
Discover sharp NCAAB picks and score predictions in our latest article! Read now 👇 https://t.co/mgIFhvMvsY pic.twitter.com/ojYZfaqLSY
— Bookmakers Review (@BMRReviews) March 22, 2023
Charles Bediako, Alabama Crimson Tide
Charles Bediako doesn’t get the attention of some of his teammates. However, there is no way that dynamic freshman Brandon Miller and fellow double-digit scorers Mark Sears and Noah Clowney would be able to do what they do without Bediako, a 7-foot sophomore from Brampton, Ontario, taking care of all the dirty work inside.
Bediako scored in double figures in all three games during Alabama’s run to the SEC tournament title. He averaged 11 points and eight rebounds in wins over Mississippi State, Missouri and Texas A&M.
In two NCAA Tournament games, he has made 8 of 12 shots from the field. He had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds to go with two steals and two blocked shots in the second round win against Maryland. In the tournament opener, Bediako finished with nine points, eight rebounds and four blocks in a win over Texas A&M Corpus Christi.
Tosan Evbuomwan, Princeton Tigers
Evbuomwan, a 6-foot-8 senior from Newcastle, England, leads Princeton in scoring (14.8 points per game) and assists (4.8).
He took control in both games during the Ivy League tournament as he averaged 21 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in the wins over Penn and Yale.
In the upset of Arizona, Evbuomwan hit three layups in a span of 68 seconds to turn what was a 12-point Arizona lead into an eight-point game. He finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the stunning 59-55 win.
Evbuomwan didn’t have to do as much offensively against Missouri as he ended up with nine points, rebounds, and five assists in the 15-point win.
The price is set at -105 for Evbuomwan to go over 16½ points, it is even money for him to top 4½ assists and -115 for him to go either over or under 6½ rebounds, according to the Las Vegas college basketball odds.
Xaivian Lee, a freshman guard from Toronto, has had a pretty quiet NCAA Tournament. However, he did record four double-digit scoring games for the Tigers during the regular season.
🐯🏀 Keeshawn Kellman takin’ his slam to go, as the Tigs head to the West Coast! #ncaabasketball #ivymadness #marchmadness #princetontigers #slamdunk #basketball #sportsphotography #basketball pic.twitter.com/WugBbXiMsM
— Split Second Photo (@Split2ndPhoto) March 14, 2023
Nathan Mensah, San Diego State Aztecs
On a team with 10 players from California, this tournament run would not be possible without Mensah, a 6-foot-10 senior from Ghana.
Mensah scored in double figures in three of his first seven games this season. During the NCAA Tournament, he has just eight points on 4-of-5 shooting. He has been doing most of his work on the other end of the court. Mensah has four blocked shots and 13 rebounds in the wins over Charleston and Furman.
San Diego State has four players standing 6-foot-9 or taller. However, only Mensah and senior forward Jaedon Ledee are in the regular rotation.
The number for Mensah for those who bet online to keep an eye on is 6½ rebounds, as the price is set at -115 for him to either go over or under that total.
Ryan Nembhard, Creighton Blue Jays
Nembhard, a sophomore from Aurora, Ontario, certainly made his presence felt in the second-round win over Baylor. He made 8 of his 13 shots, 4 of his 6 shots from 3-point range and all 10 of his free throws on his way to a career-high 30 points.
Every game it’s a different player
Congrats on a career high game R2 👏#GoJays x #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/EIAblLlDO3— Creighton Men’s Basketball (@BluejayMBB) March 20, 2023
After a solid freshman season, the Bluejays’ floor leader made improvements in every area of his game. His field goal shooting went from 40.4 and 43.4%, and from 3-point range, he went from 311 to 37.3% while his free throw shooting mark jumped from 73.2% as a freshman to 87.8% this season.
Nembhard has more than twice as many assists as turnovers this season and he will be front and center in the matchup against Princeton.
The payout is -115 for Nembhard to go either over or under -115 points, it is even money for him to top 3½ assists, -120 to go over 4½ rebounds and -105 to have at least two 3-pointers.
Creighton’s roster also includes 6-foot-10 freshman Frederick King from the Bahamas as well as senior guard Francisco Farabello from Argentina (nine points, two assists in the Baylor win).
