The No.14-seeded Georgia State Panthers take on the No.6-seeded Xavier Musketeers in the third round of the NCAA tournament at Veterans Memorial Arena – Jacksonville, FL. The game gets underway at 6:10 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 21.
The Musketeers won big over Ole Miss 76-57 in the second round. Matt Stainbrook was the game’s high scorer with 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting. The Panthers, meanwhile, are coming off a 57-56 win over Baylor in the second round. R.J. Hunter led the game in scoring with 35 points on 8-for-17 shooting.
Xavier is a six-point favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Musketeers enter the game with records of 22-13 Straight Up (SU) and 16-17-1 Against The Spread (ATS). The Musketeers are a phenomenal shooting team from the line with 15.5 free throws made per game, one of the highest marks in Division I. Xavier has the ninth-most assists in Division I, averaging 16.5 per game.
Across the court, the Panthers head into the game with records of 16-16-1 ATS and 25-9 SU. The Panthers are shooting lights out so far, with a .484 field-goal percentage that ranks 13th in Division I. When it comes to making good decisions with the ball, not many are better than the Panthers. They have one of the top assist-to-turnover ratios in the country at 1.32. Switching gears to the Georgia State defense, it averages 8.9 steals per game, good for sixth in the nation.
Xavier and Georgia State will be facing off in their first head-to-head clash of the season. When they last met the Musketeers were winners, taking the head-to-head record to an even 0-0 SU.
Predictions: SU Winner – GSU, ATS Winner – GSU
Notes
Ranked 38th, the Georgia State Panthers have an offensive rating of 110.4. The Xavier Musketeers rank 138th with a defensive rating of just 184.3.
The Xavier Musketeers have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking 25th in the nation with a FG% of 47.6%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Georgia State Panthers have a losing 1-4 record.
The Xavier Musketeers and the Georgia State Panthers both rank higher in average field goal percentage when compared to their effective field goal percentages. Xavier is 41st and 25th in the nation for eFG% and FG% respectively, while Georgia State ranks 46th and 13th in these categories.
Xavier ranks among the best in the nation in assists at ninth (16.5 assists per game). Georgia State is ranked 81st with 13.9 assists per game.
Georgia State, the 75th-ranked team in blocked shots, registers an average of 4.3 per game. Xavier does worse, ranked 235th with 2.9.
The Georgia State Panthers average 8.9 steals per game, ranked sixth in the nation. The Xavier Musketeers have a 5-4 record when they give up at least 8 steals.
