IVY LEAGUE SEMIFINAL
CORNELL vs. DARTMOUTH (COR -5.5, 158.5)
CORNELL OVER 81.5 POINTS
These two teams split their regular season meetings in Ivy League play. The home team won each game. Cornell is the hotter of the two teams entering tournament play. Cornell won each of its last four games, the final three in big blow out fashion. The Big Red scored at least 85 points in all four wins and hit 100-plus in each of the last two.
Cornell averages 85 points per game, which ranks No. 6 in the nation in scoring. Dartmouth is not terrible defensively, but they are going to have a hard time keeping up with Cornell today. The Big Red also want to exact some revenge for their worst loss of the season - at Dartmouth, 88-49. Cornell gets it done with offense and goes Over this team total.
CONFERENCE USA CHAMPIONSHIP
JACKSONVILLE STATE vs. LIBERTY (LIB -6.5, 130.5)
LIBERTY ML
The winner of this one punches its ticket to the Big Dance. These two split their regular season meetings. Jacksonville State won at home on Feb. 1. Liberty returned the favor in a low-scoring game on Feb. 27. Since that loss, the Flames have won 10 of 11 games. Liberty has also had the tougher path through the conference tournament. The Flames beat UTEP and Kennesaw State while Jacksonville State avoided playing Western Kentucky who was upset in the first round.
Liberty is one of the best shooting teams in the nation. They rank in the top 35 in most shooting categories. They are especially good from behind the arc where they shoot 38.3 percent. That is 17th-best in the country. Jacksonville State is a solid defensive team and ranks in the top 50 in most opponent FG shooting categories. However, the one area where the Gamecocks struggle is against the three-pointer. I think Liberty exploits that and gets the win and the trip to the NCAA tournament.
Ylose expert Coach Rick Bowe delivers his daily Quick Picks. The Coach continues to roll up big wins in college basketball, college football, the NFL, MLB and much more. Coach Rick offers a unique perspective to handicapping. Check out his daily free picks right here and jump on his daily Best Bets, which you can find right here at Ylose.com/coach.