Cincinnati could be walking into a buzzsaw Thursday in the West Region when they face the high-pressure Missouri Tigers at Verizon Center.
This game has seen the biggest line move of any Madness game with bettors throwing money at the Bearcats (moving them from 3-point dogs to 1-point favorites). This is confusing since Mizzou seems to have an edge in many key areas, including size and defense.
The Bearcats are the 6-seed against the 11-seeded Tigers. Cincy chalked up a 25-8 record overall in NCAAB action, but critics say they played a weak non-conference schedule. The Tigers are 23-10 and 11-14-1 ATS.
View Missouri vs Cincinnati Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
Sportsbooks had the Bearcats open as 3-point underdogs in this particular matchup but the line has moved considerably. The best current Mizzou line was +1 at Sportsbook.
Power Rankings / Prediction:
It's a betting matchup between the No. 35-rated Bearcats and the No. 114-ranked Tigers, according to the latest pro hoops power rankings here at Odds Shark. Prediction formulas run on this game indicate a possible 82-80 result in favor of the Bearcats.
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How They Match Up:
Scoring and defensive stats point to some edges in this matchup. The game features Cincinnati's No. 164-ranked scoring average of 69 PPG, against a Tigers defense rated No. 270 and allowing 71.4 PPG. The Bearcats FG% has averaged 43.6% to date this season, less than the Tigers shooters have managed so far (46.1% per game).
Comparing how these foes stack up statistically, Missouri owns the country's No. 315-rated mark, allowing 78.4 points per game on the highway. Cincinnati, on the other hand, rates No. 155 in scoring at home.
Missouri lost its last outing, an 86-71 result against Texas A&M on March 10. They failed to cover in that game as a 3-point favorite.
Cincinnati lost its last outing, an 89-51 result against Notre Dame on March 10. They failed to cover in that game as a 2.5-point underdog.
Missouri Tigers Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 8-2
After playing Texas A&M are 5-5
After a loss are 7-3
Cincinnati Bearcats Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 9-1
After playing Notre Dame are 5-2
After a loss are 7-3
A few Tigers at Bearcats trends to consider:
Cincinnati is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Cincinnati's last 6 games
