The No.8-seeded NC State Wolfpack take on the No.1-seeded Villanova Wildcats in the third round of the NCAA tournament at Consol Arena – Pittsburgh, PA. The game starts at 7:10 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 21.
The Wildcats won big over Lafayette 93-52 in the second round. Dylan Ennis had 17 points, eight rebounds, and four assists for Villanova. The Wolfpack, meanwhile, are coming off a 66-65 win over LSU in the second round. Trevor Lacey played well, accumulating 19 points, four rebounds, and one block.
The game should be a battle of strength against strength, as the high-powered offense of Villanova (ninth in the nation with an offensive efficiency of 116.4) takes on the top-notch defense of NC State (27th in the nation with a defensive efficiency of 153.4).
The odds are even for this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Wildcats enter the game with records of 33-2 Straight Up (SU) and 25-9 Against The Spread (ATS). In their last 10 games, they are 8-2 ATS. Villanova is excellent from the perimeter with 273 three-pointers made (8.8 per game), the 14th-most in the country. Spreading the ball around is a huge part of Villanova’s offense. They are 13th in the nation in assists with an average of 15.8 per game. Villanova has given up very few turnovers with only an average of 10.8 per game.
On the other side, the Wolfpack head into the game with records of 16-14-1 ATS and 21-13 SU. Most recently, NC State is 7-3 ATS over the last 10 games. NC State is one of the better rebounding teams in Division I. The Wolfpack average 38.1 rebounds per game, making them the 24th-best team in the country for that category.
Villanova and NC State will be facing off in their first head-to-head contest of the season. When they last met the Wolfpack were winners, moving their SU record against Villanova to 1-0. Additionally, NC State leads the matchup ATS with a record of 1-0.
Predictions: SU Winner – Nova, ATS Winner – Nova
Notes
The Villanova Wildcats rank ninth for their offensive rating of 116.4. The NC State Wolfpack have a defensive rating of 153.4 (ranked 27th).
On average, Villanova has 65.9 possessions per game and scores 1.164 points on each possession. NC State has both fewer possessions (65.0) and scores fewer points during those possessions (1.077).
The Villanova Wildcats have one of the best effective field goal percentages this season, ranking 18th in the country with an eFG% of 55.0%. When their opponents record a similar or higher eFG%, the NC State Wolfpack have an abysmal 1-5 record.
On average, Villanova attempts 23.0 three pointers and NC State attempts 18.4. Both teams have winning records when they have 20 or more three point attempts. The Villanova Wildcats sit at 21-2 and the NC State Wolfpack are 9-5.
The seventh-ranked team in the category, Villanova has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.47 this season. NC State ranks outside the top 100 at 122nd with an A/TO of 1.08.
The NC State Wolfpack average 38.1 rebounds per game and are ranked 24th. The Villanova Wildcats average 34.7 rebounds per game, ranked 162nd.
The NC State Wolfpack rank 55th in offensive rebounds. The Villanova Wildcats rank 134th in the nation in defensive rebounds.
On average, NC State forces a turnover rate of 23.8%. When Villanova turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 2-1 record.
