Point Spread: Florida -3 Game Total Line: 149 Thursday?s action in the Southeast Region kicks off with the No.3 seed BYU Cougars tangling with the No.2 seed Florida Gators in the Sweet 16 round of this year?s NCAA Men?s Tournament. Tip-off from the Superdome in New Orleans is set for 7:27 p.m. (ET) and the game will be broadcast nationally on TBS.
BYU opened-up the tournament with a 74-66 win over No. 14 seed Wofford as an 8 ½-point favorite. The Cougars then proceeded to roll over No.11 seed Gonzaga 89-67 as a one-point favorite to advance to the Sweet 16.
There was some genuine concern when BYU decided to dismiss its leading rebounder and third highest scorer Brandon Davies from the team due to violations of the school?s personal conduct policy, but so far the team has not missed a beat without him. Much of this is due to the fact that Jimmer Fredette has averaged 33 points a game to help mask the Cougars? problems underneath the boards.
Florida made its way into this round with a 79-51 romp over No.15 seed UC Santa Barbara in the second round as a 12 ½-point favorite, followed by a 73-65 win over No.7 seed UCLA as a 5 ½-point favorite.
Erving Walker turned in a game-high 21 point performance against the Bruins after leading the team all season long with an average of 14.7 points a game. Kenny Boynton, who is averaging 14 points a game, added 12 points and five assists against UCLA before leaving the game with a slightly sprained left ankle. He is currently listed as probable and should be ready to go for Thursday?s game.
These two teams faced one another in the first round of last year?s NCAA Tournament with BYU coming away with a thrilling 99-92 victory in double-overtime as a five-point favorite. You can expect another close, hard-fought battle this time around as well, but stick with Florida to come out on top with a win that just barely covers the three-point spread.
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