00:00Do you think that game is close with VCU?
00:03VCU, obviously, the team that beat North Carolina.
00:06Illinois, you know, everyone really likes this basketball team.
00:09You talk about one of the best scoring teams in the country this year.
00:13Is this game close?
00:15I don't think so.
00:16I think Illinois ends up winning by double digits here.
00:19I think they cover.
00:20You know, I know everyone's on VCU right now, and I think that says a lot
00:23because this line is really held out despite a lot of the public
00:26really liking VCU in this spot.
00:28Like you said, big comeback win against the Tar Heels,
00:30but the Tar Heels were extremely vulnerable coming into the tournament.
00:33I don't think the Rams have the offensive firepower to keep up
00:36with the Illinois offense, and the size and rebounding advantage
00:39are going to be huge here.
00:40I know people are a little bit skeptical about Illinois because of how they
00:43look down the back half of the regular season, but four of their losses
00:47came in overtime, and I also don't think their defense is as bad
00:50as a lot of people think.
00:51You know, the stretch where they really struggled on defense,
00:53they didn't have their best defender in Kylan Boswell.
00:56They also had Stajakovic, another good defender who was banged up
00:59for a few games as well.
01:00So, I mean, this is a defense that doesn't force turnovers.
01:03They do defend well in the paint.
01:05They hold opponents to about 31% shooting from deep.
01:07So, I do think they can get the job done here,
01:09and I think it's going to be a little bit of an emotional letdown spot
01:12for the Rams.
01:16Longhorns, Longhorns, again, do you think their job today that, you know,
01:19I mean, against Gonzaga, you know, Mark Few's guys, obviously, again,
01:23you know, in the tournament here, expecting to go far.
01:25What are you looking at there?
01:27I love Texas in this spot.
01:29I mean, there's a few ways to handle this.
01:31Plus six and a half on the spread is one.
01:33Over team total, 70 and a half is another.
01:36Looking at the over points for Mathis,
01:38Vakaitis is another way to look at it.
01:40They just match up extremely well against the Zags.
01:44I mean, you look at the Longhorns' biggest weaknesses.
01:46It's their three-point defense and their tendency to foul.
01:49The Zags do not get to the line.
01:50They do not shoot well from the arc.
01:52And on the other side of the floor,
01:54Gonzaga has, like, these impressive defensive stats,
01:56but those are really puffed up by weak competition
01:58in the West Coast Conference.
02:00We've seen them struggle earlier in the year against more athletic teams,
02:03and I don't think they have anybody that's capable of locking up
02:05Swain or Vakaitis.
02:07So I think Texas can definitely cover
02:10and can maybe even win out right here.
