If it weren’t for Syracuse, this would be the most unlikely pairing in this year’s Final Four. Online Sports betting sites have now posted their lines for the first matchup happening this Saturday between the Villanova Wild Cats and the Oklahoma Sooners. This game presents two evenly matched teams with exciting offenses and stand out runs in this year’s March Madness. But, in the end which of these #2 seeded teams will be moving on to the National Championship game?
The Oklahoma Sooners reached the big dance at Houston after giving the top seeded Oregon Ducks a definite spanking. Buddy Hield, the star of March Madness so far, has been on fire. The Sooners offense has been a real problem for defenders and has been unstoppable so far. They have been killing their opponents softly from the 3-point line and out scoring them in some of the tournaments most exciting displays of offensive basketball. Yet, they reach this game as the underdogs (+115) in most online sports betting sites and other top sportsbooks. The reason is their bad habit of turning the ball over.
Oklahoma has a great offense that could trade baskets with any team on the tournament. But, their ball handling skills could put them at risk of losing many possessions at any given point of the game. This could prove crucial against teams like Villanova, North Carolina or even Syracuse’s asphyxiating pressure d.
Villanova are the overall favorites in online sports betting sites after defeating the team marked to win the National Championship. After knocking out Kansas, the Wildcats are now serious contenders to reach the finals against North Carolina on the Final game. But first they must deal with Buddy Hield and the Sooners. On paper, the Sooners shouldn’t be tougher than Kansas, but in these types of matches one never knows. Judging by a naked eye test, Villanova has the upper hand against Oklahoma as their defense could force the Sooners to turn the ball over and if they manage to do that… game over.
However, Buddy Hield has been phenomenal in this tournament earning wide spread recognition as the best player so far during March Madness. He could crown Oklahoma’s fantastic run with a trip to the finals. The money line on most top sportsbooks for the Sooners is very attractive and picking them to win this game isn’t that much of a risk.
This will come down to who can score the most, and while Villanova might focus on isolating Hield, the problem is that the Sooners has a great supporting cast that can make it rain all over the floor. Villanova is the favorite but they can’t make the mistake of thinking that Oklahoma is just a one-man show. That’s how Oklahoma is going to beat them. This game will be a high scoring affair that is going to be very close to the final seconds. In the end, and giving the tournament another upset for online sports betting sites, the Oklahoma Sooners will beat Villanova by at least 4 points.
