It is the first game of the Sweet Sixteen as Clemson faces Arizona. It is time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a Clemson-Arizona prediction, pick, and how to watch.
The sixth seed in the West Region, Clemson, enters the game after two a solid first weekend of the tournament. It started underdogs to the 11-seed New Mexico. Clemson came in as a two-point underdog to the lower seed but would dominate the game. They built a 24-point half-time lead and would go on to win 77-56. In game two, Clemson would face a three-seed in Baylor. Once again, Clemson was the underdog, being 4.5-point dogs going into the game. Once again, Clemson would dominate. Clemson took the lead less than four minutes into the game and never gave it back. Baylor would get within three late, but Clemson would win 72-64.
Meanwhile, Arizona is the two seed in the West Region. They opened the tournament as 20.5-point favorites over Long Beach State. While they would not cover it, it would be a great performance. They started slow, leading by just six at the half, but they would open the second on a 9-0 run and would go on to win 85-65. The second game of the weekend was against seven-seed Dayton. Dayton consistently got the game within five points in the second half, but could never fully close the. gap, as Arizona won 78-68.
Here are the college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
March Madness Odds: Clemson-Arizona Odds
Clemson: +6.5 (-104)
Moneyline: +240
Arizona: -6.5 (-118)
Moneyline: -295
Over: 152.5 (-105)
Under: 152.5 (-115)
How to Watch March Madness
Time: 7:09 PM ET/ 4:09 PM PT
TV: CBS
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why Clemson Will Cover The Spread/Win
Clemson sits 23rd in the nation in KenPom's adjusted efficiency rankings this year. They have been solid on offense, sitting 24th in offensive efficiency, and are 38th in defensive efficiency. Clemson is 60th in the nation in points per game this year, while sitting 67 in assists per game and 34th in assists to turnover ratio. PJ Hall leads the offense this year. He averages 18.5 points per game this year while hitting shooting 49.0 percent from the field. Joseph Girard III comes in with 15.3 points per game, while he is shooting 42.9 percent from the field this year. Rounding out the top scorers is Chase Hunter. He comes in with 12.7 points per game this year.
Clemson is not the best rebounding team in the nation this year. They are 97th in the nation in rebounding this year, but they are 33rd in the nation in defensive rebounding rate this year. PJ Hall has been solid in the rebounding game, with 6.4 rebounds per game. This is second on the team this year. The leader is Ian Schieffellin. He leads the team with 9.5 rebounds per game. Just over six of those rebounds per game come from the defensive side of the court while over three on offensive rebounds per game.
On defense, Clemson is 116th in the nation in points allowed per game this year. PJ Hall leads the team on defense. He comes into the game with 1.5 blocks per game with .8 steals per game this year. Clemson has just 4.65 steals per game this year, but with just 10.22 turnovers per game, it results in a solid turnover margin for Clemson.
Why Arizona Will Cover The Spread/Win
Arizona comes in ranked fifth in KenPom's adjusted efficiency rankings this year. They are ninth in adjusted offensive efficiency while sitting tenth in adjusted defensive efficiency. Arizona is third in the nation in points per game, while also sitting third in the nation in average scoring margin and fourth in assists per game. Caleb Love led the team in scoring. He comes in with 18.1 points per game this year while hitting 41.8 percent of his threes this year. Further, he is third on the team with 3.5 assists per game. Oumar Ballo comes in with 12.9 points per game this year, while he is shooting 65.7 percent from the field. Meanwhile, Pelle Larsson comes in with 12.9 points per game, while sitting tied for first on the team with 3.7 assists per game this year. Finally, Kylan Boswell is tied for the team lead in assists, while having 3.7 per game and scoring 9.8 points per game this year.
Arizona is second in the nation in total rebounds per game. They are fifth in the nation in defensive rebounding rate while sitting 12th in the nation in offensive rebounding rate. Oumar Ballo leads the way and comes in with 10.0 rebounds per game this year. Meanwhile, Keshad Johnson has 5.7 rebounds per game, helping him to 11.7 points per game. Finally, Caleb Love has 4.9 rebounds per game this year.
Arizona ranks 152nd in the nation in opponent scoring per game, while sitting 59th in the nation in opponent effective field goal percentage. Still, they are 28th in the nation in steals per game this year. Five different players come in with one or more steals per game this year, led by Kylan Boswell, who comes in with 1.4 steals per game. Arizona averages 8.8 steals per game this year while having just 12.3 turnovers per game this year.
Final Clemson-Arizona Prediction & Pick
While Arizona is the better team and has a great offense, Clemson has played well in this tournament. They have been the underdog twice and won both games. Most likely, their tournament run will come to an end here. The Arizona rebounding game is far superior to Clemson. Further, while neither defense is great, the Arizona offense is much better as well. Still, this will be close, as Clemson has been shown they can fight in this tournament. Take Clemson and the points in this one.
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Final Clemson-Arizona Prediction & Pick: Clemson +6.5 (-104)
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