NCAA Tournament Odds -- Kansas Has Formdiable Elite Eight Foe in Oregon

  • In Charles Jay
  • Sat, Mar 25th, 2017 7:04:56 pm
  • By Charles Jay - Exclusive to OSGA


The Oregon Ducks will try to advance to their first Final Four since 1939 as they tackle the Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday night.

The Oregon Ducks were one of the top teams in college basketball all season long, and they have shown the ability to play whether the pace is fast or slow. Now their defense will be put to a huge challenge as they have to get by the Kansas Jayhawks in the Elite Eight, in a game that begins at 8:45 PM ET on Saturday night at the Sprint Center in Kansas City. BetAnySports customers will get reduced juice before the game starts, and then they can get their fill of live in-game wagering as they access the state-of-the-art software available through Live Betting Ultra.

The Ducks had a genuine barnburner in the Sweet 16, beating Michigan 69-68. The Wolverines were a team that came into the game with the third-ranked offense in the country in terms of Adjusted Efficiency, and Oregon was able to handle them to a certain degree, doing a great job of keeping them off the glass, allowing just two offensive rebounds. Now Kansas has assumed the #3 ranking in that efficiency metric, so the Ducks have their work cut out for them again. They are 31-5 straight-up and 21-13 ATS.

The Jayhawks have been simply awesome during this tournament. After dispatching UC-Davis in their first game, they teased both Michigan State and Purdue, before pulling away with a lot of prejudice from those Big 10 foes. They have won their three games by a total of 90 points, and they really haven't been slowed down either, as they have reached 90 in each of these games. Yes, they know how to rebound on the offensive glass (pulling down 34.2% of all misses) and they don't miss very much, canning 41% of their triples and almost 54% of their two-point attempts.

In the NCAA Tournament odds posted on this game by the folks at BetAnySports, Kansas is the favorite:

Kansas Jayhawks -6.5
Oregon Ducks +.5

Over 157 points -110
Under 157 points -110

On the season, Oregon is #1 in the nation in shot-blocking percentage, but a big part of that was center Chris Boucher, who has been lost to the team with a knee injury. His absence was definitely felt during the Pac 12 conference tournament, as the Ducks allowed 58% to the Arizona Wildcats in a 83-80 defeat. But that was situation where they had virtually no time to adjust to the loss of Boucher, and since then they have most certainly employed a winning game plan. Jordan Bell, a power forward, does a pretty good job of altering shots, as he averages more than two blocks per game, and there was always some balance on offense. Dillon Brooks, the star forward, averages a little over 16 points, but there are three starters remaining who average in double figures.

And by now, BetAnySports patrons know that one of them, Tyler Dorsey, has emerged as an explosive force. Dorsey has scored at least 20 points in six consecutive games, and he is definitely someone Kansas has to account for. Any team coached by Bill Self is going to be solid on defense, but if there is one weak spot with the Jayhawks, it is their ability to defend the three-point arc, as they rank only 188th nationwide in that category. Dorsey has been red hot from all over the floor, including 19 of 30 from downtown in his last five games (63.3%), so this is a concern. Meanwhile, Oregon may be well-equipped to deal with Kansas' three-point prowess, as they have permitted only 31.4% shooting from long-range.

For Oregon, Brooks might wind up a very profitable matchup with Josh Jackson, the outstanding freshman who missed the one and only game Kansas played in the Big 12 tournament, as he sat out a suspension connected to a driving violation. This will be an interesting matchup, because if Jackson were to find foul trouble it would hurt the Jayhawks immeasurably, and at the same time, he can go from being an asset to a liability in a hurry, if you have to put him at the free-throw line late in a game. Jackson is by far the worst member of the rotation as far as hitting his foul shots, making only 56%. Kansas does not have a lot of depth, and that could be a factor as well. Don't sell Oregon coach Dana Altman short; he has brought his team this far without Boucher, and he can take them farther.

BetAnySports offers a great free play bonus just for signing up, as well as reduced juice, which gives you better NCAA Tournament odds...... Remember that you can stay involved in the action even after the opening whistle, as you access Live Betting Ultra, and there are numerous payment options, including the virtual currency of Bitcoin, which is not only fast and easy with their automated system, but never, EVER incurs a transaction fee!


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