St. Bonaventure vs. Florida Prediction
Should Florida be on upset alert tonight in the opening round of the NCAA tournament? The Gators will take on 11-seed St. Bonaventure at 9:57 p.m. ET.
Game Snapshot
(739) Florida vs. (740) Florida
Thursday, March 15, 2018
TV: TRUTV, 9:57 p.m. ET
Current Odds
According to oddsmakers from online sports book YouWager, the Gators are 5.5-point favorites to knock off the Bonnies while the over/under currently sits at 143 points.
Line Movement
Neither the point spread nor the over/under has moved off the opening number as of this writing. Florida opened as a 5.5-point favorite and that’s where the line is at the majority of online sportsbooks, while the total hit the board at 143 and that too is unchanged.
Bet Tonight’s College Hoops Action
Public Betting Information
As of this writing, 71% of betting tickets wagered at online sportsbooks are on the Bonnies to cover the spread. Meanwhile, 59% of the betting tickets are on the over.
Key Injuries
Josh Ayeni (knee) is out for the year for St. Bonaventure while Florida will be without John Egbunu (knee), Isaiah Stokes (knee) and Chase Johnson (concussion).
Betting Strategy
Jaylen Adams and the Bonnies have been great to bettors recently, covering the spread in five of their last seven non-conference games. They’re also 4-1 against the number in their last five games versus a team with a winning record and are 3-1-1 against the spread in their last five games against SEC competition. That said, St. Bonaventure is among BPI’s worst teams to earn an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament this season. Meanwhile, since 2006, no team has reached the Elite 8 more often than Florida. The Gators turn the ball over on 14 percent of their possessions, which is the lowest turnover percentage in the SEC and sixth-lowest in Division I. I don’t expect Jalen Hudson and Co. to be upset tonight and this is a small price to lay on a team that could make a deep run in this year’s tournament.
MARCH MADNESS COLLEGE BASKETBALL PREDICTION: FLORIDA GATORS -5.5