The Notre Dame Fighting Irish own just about every possible edge in their battle against Akron and the betting volume reflects that fact as they tip off today at United Center.
The 2-seed Irish bring speed and size to the table and should be able to handle the Zips, MAC champions in 2011. Notre Dame was favored by 13 points andeven with a double-digit spread, more than 90% of bettors at some shops (such as Sportsbook) are backing them.
The Fighting Irish were 26-6 (16-11 ATS) on the season, while the Zips were a respectable 23-12 (18-12 ATS). Both teams have ttrended slightly to the OVER in totals betting this year and the best OVER line had been at Sportsbook as of Thursday.
View Akron vs Notre Dame Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
Sportsbooks had set the Fighting Irish as 13-point favorites on the Sportsbook line for this contest.
Power Rankings / Prediction:
It's a betting matchup between the No. 36-rated Fighting Irish and the No. 81-ranked Zips, according to the latest pro hoops power rankings here at Odds Shark. Prediction formulas run on this game indicate a possible 80-74 result in favor of the Fighting Irish.
How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Notre Dame's No. 35 nationally ranked offense (76 points per game) against a Zips defense that sits as the No. 103 at 65.6 PPG. The Fighting Irish have been averaging 46.6% from the field, more than the Zips have managed so far this season (43.3% on average).
Comparing how these foes stack up statistically, Akron owns the country's No. 114-rated mark, allowing 68.7 points per game on the highway. Notre Dame, on the other hand, rates No. 17 in scoring at home.
Akron won its last outing, a 66-65 result against Kent State on March 12. They covered in that game as a 1.5-point underdog.
Notre Dame was an 83-77 loser in their most recent outing against Louisville. They failed to cover the 2–point spread as favorites.
Akron Zips Trends:
When playing on Friday are 9-1
After playing Kent State are 7-3
After a win are 9-1
Notre Dame Fighting Irish Trends:
When playing on Friday are 5-5
After playing Louisville are 5-2
After a loss are 6-4
A few Zips at Fighting Irish trends to consider:
Notre Dame is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Notre Dame's last 11 games
