Seminoles Favored Against Buffaloes in Lone 4 vs 5 Matchup

The fifth-seeded Colorado Buffaloes (23-8) and No. 4 seed Florida State Seminoles (17-6) both advanced past the first round with double-digit wins as favorites and will meet Monday to determine who advances to the Sweet 16 from their part of the bracket in the East Region.

This is the only No. 4 vs No. 5 matchup in the second round after the remaining brackets had upsets in the first round, with Florida State listed as small chalk.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The Seminoles are down to 1-point favorites at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark while the total is up as much as one point to 139.5 at some spots in early wagering action. The Buffaloes were more impressive in their first-round rout of the 12th-seeded Georgetown Hoyas, jumping out to a 47-23 halftime lead and coasting to a 96-73 rout.

Colorado covered easily as a 6-point favorite while Florida State (-10.5) fell short in a 64-54 victory against No. 13 seed UNC Greensboro, and bettors have taken notice.

Colorado News & Notes

The Buffaloes breezed through the first round as one of the five Pac-12 teams to make the big dance. All five teams from the conference moved on to the second round too, including the Oregon Ducks, who advanced via “no contest” due to COVID-19 protocols. Regardless, Colorado could end up being a force to be reckoned with in the East if the team continues to play like it did in the opener.

Four players scored in double figures, led by Jabari Walker’s 24 points (9-of-10 shooting) in 20 minutes off the bench. The Buffaloes have won seven of their past eight games, going 5-2 against the spread in their last seven.

Florida State News & Notes

The Seminoles battled a tough Spartans squad in the first round and hope that experience will help them in this game. After getting off to a quick 13-2 lead, Florida State saw UNC Greensboro close the gap and trail just 29-26 at halftime.

The Seminoles have had issues holding on to leads in the second half too, but they were able to prevail late and win by double figures despite getting only five points combined from starters M.J. Walker and RayQuan Evans.

Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton has taken his last two tournament teams to at least the Sweet 16, so he has obviously been here before and knows what it takes to help his players learn from their mistakes and perform better.