These two games are honestly the undercard to the heavyweight battles of tomorrow. ESPN basically put these games together to fill out its Friday night lineups on ESPN2 and U. Aside from saving us from hearing about A-Rod's Dominican cousin and Mike Leach's contract situation these games bring little to the table.
Illinois State 22-5 (11-5 MVC) vs. Niagara 21-7 (12-4 MAAC)
Illinois State has been struggling lately, as noted earlier and needs to win the conference tourney to make the dance. Niagara has been better but just lost to Rider almost killing their regular season MAAC title dreams. Look for Niagara's size to cause ISU major problems in a game the Purple Eagles need to win before a major test against Siena.
Key Stat- The top four scorers on each team shoot better then 70% from the foul line.
Prediction- Niagara 78, Illinois St. 70
Virginia Commonwealth 19-8 (12-4 Colonial) vs. Nevada 15-10 (8-4 WAC)
This game has two stars: Eric Maynor and Luke Babbitt, and two teams that could end up being spoilers in the dance. The problem for Nevada is that they are simply too inconsistent, and lack the leadership that VCU has. Nevada is one year away. VCU has looked sluggish of late, but with a sense of urgency and a standout senior point guard, the Rams should tame the Wolf Pack.
Key Stats- Senior PPG: Nevada 3.4, VCU 22.9 (both teams have one senior)
3 PT %: Nevada 29%, VCU 37%
Prediction- VCU 67, Nevada 54
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