Line: Utah -6.5, Total: 132 (current NCAA Tournament point spreads and totals)
Stephen F. Austin Record 29-4 ATS 3-3 O/U 2-1-1 Overview: The Lumberjacks haven’t been involved in too many lined games, but they did get an outright 64-52 win as 6-point underdogs at Memphis in December. They were favorites in their five other games with a point spread attached. SF Austin has had some spread success in Tournament play in recent years, beating VCU 77-75 in overtime as 6-point dogs in last year’s Big Dance, before failing to cover (+9.5) in a 77-60 loss to UCLA. In 2013, the Lumberjacks lost by a point as 7-point dogs at Stanford in the NIT.
Utah Record: 24-8 ATS: 20-11 OVER/UNDER: 14-16 Overview: For most of the regular season, the Utes were on fire when it came to covering the spread thanks to a dominant home record and the outstanding play of senior point guard Delon Wright. In fact, they started the season on a remarkable 18-6 ATS run. However, Utah cooled off late in its campaign, going 2-5 ATS in its last seven games. Also, six of the team’s last eight games stayed UNDER the total. Perhaps competition outside the Pac-12 will help the Utes, who were 7-3-1 ATS in non-conference games this season.
Team page: Utah Utes
Handicapping tools: Matchup analysis | Power ratings | ATS standings
The Linemakers’ lean: Stephen F. Austin comes into the Tournament on a nine-game winning streak. Despite the upset of VCU last year, we’ll pass on the side. The Lumberjacks do rank very high in assists, field-goal percentage and points per game. The lean is on the OVER.
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