March Madness Sweet 16: #5 West Virginia Mountaineers at #1 Villanova Wildcats

In game two of today’s Sweet 16 matchups, the #5 West Virginia Mountaineers are at the #1 Villanova Wildcats. This East Region game will tip off at 7:27 p.m. E.T. at the TD Garden in Boston. Our West Virginia plays Villanova 2018 Sweet 16 free pick has the Wildcats at -5.5 and the over/under at 152.5. There are two more games tonight, and then starting tomorrow the NCAA Elite Eight will begin. Make sure to check out the rest of tonight’s picks as well as both of tomorrow’s and Sundays. This has been a tournament filled with surprises. Will there be a surprise with this game tonight?

Recent History

The Mountaineers, who finished third in the Big 12, lost to Kansas in the conference finals 81-70. In this year’s tournament, they beat the #12 Murray State Racers 85-68, and in round two, they took down the #13 Marshall Thundering Herd 94-71.

Villanova finished second in the Big East just one game behind the Xavier Musketeers. They managed to win the Big East tourney, beating the Providence Friars in the finals 76-66 in OT. Xavier beat the #16 Radford Highlanders in the initial round of the NCAA Tournament 87-61. In the second round, the beat the #9 Alabama Crimson Tide 81-58.

Basic Stats and Facts

When it comes to scoring and overall defense, the Cats are better than the Mountaineers. Villanova is scoring 86.9 PPG to WVU’s 80.2 PPG, holding opponents to 59.5 PPG while this opponent is at 69.5, and putting in 50.3% of their shots to the Mountaineer’s 43.8%. Both teams are hitting 77% of their frees and 40% of their threes.

Players to Watch

Look for Mountaineer senior guard Jevon Carter to be an essential part of this team’s offense and defense. Carter is making 3.0 SPG and grabbing 4.7 RPG while scoring 17.4 PPG and making 6.6 APG. Sophomore forward Sagaba Konate will need to have a solid game in the paint for WVU to contend. He leads the team in rebounds with 7.6 per game and is third in points, averaging 10.8 per game.

The Wildcats will feature freshman guard Omari Spellman in the paint. He leads ‘Nova in rebounds with 7.9 PPG and is one of six players who are averaging 10 or more point a game. Two guards are light out shooters, Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges who are averaging 19.1 PPG and 18.0 PPG respectively. Brunson is dishing off 4.7 APG while Bridges is handling 5.4 RPG. They are both shooting better than 51% from the floor and better than 42% from beyond the arc.

Our West Virginia Plays Villanova 2018 Sweet 16 Free Pick

The Mountaineers have not really been tested in this tournament. This game against the Wildcats will definitely test this team. We think that Villanova will do well against West Virginia. Our West Virginia plays Villanova 2018 Sweet 16 free pick is the Wildcats at -5.5. We’re also going with the under at 152.5

Mountaineers and Wildcats Pick Summary: Villanova at -5.5 and under 152.5