It’s
on to the Finals of the NIT Tournament and we will see the George Washington
Colonials take on the Valparaiso Crusaders at Madison Square Garden in New York.
ESPN will carry this game, which has a start time of 7:00 pm EST.
Current
betting odds for this game have the have the Crusaders listed as 2 point
favorites, while the total has been set at 133.
The
George Washington Colonials have had an impressive run through the NIT
Tournament and here they are in the Finals, with a chance to win the NIT
Tournament for the first time in school history. The Colonials got to the Finals
knocking off Hofstra by 2, top-seeded Monmouth on the road by 16, a very solid
Florida team by 5 and San Diego State by 19. Their average margin of victory is
10.5 ppg in the tournament so far. The Colonials are now 4-1 ATS in their last 5
non-conference games, but just 2-9 ATS in their last 11 games after allowing
less than 50 points in their previous. GW is led by Tyler Cavanaugh, who
averages 16.8 ppg and hits 42.3% from long range. He has much better in the
tournament as he has averaged 21.3 ppg, 9.8 rpg and has hit 10 of 20 from long
range. 2nd on the team is Patricio Garino, who averages 14.1 ppg and hits 42.7%
from beyond the arc, while Kevin Larsen rounds out the double digit scorers on
the team at 12.1 ppg, while hitting 45.5% from downtown and leading the team in
rebounding at 8.3 rpg. The Colonials enter the game ranked 116th in the nation
in scoring, putting up 75.6 ppg, while also ranking 141st in shooting overall,
69th from long range and 22nd from the charity stripe. The defensive numbers
have been decent as they come in ranked 94th in points allowed, giving up just
68.7 ppg, while also ranking 137th in defensive FG% overall and 100th in 3-point
defense. The Colonials are 70th in the nation in rebounding, while they commit
just 11.3 turnovers per game (57th) and force 11.8 turnovers per game (239th).
The
Valparaiso Crusaders were the Horizon League Champs and now they find themselves
in a spot to win their first ever NIT Tournament Title. Valpo got here by
beating Texas Southern by 11, Florida State by 12, St Mary’s by 16 and BYU by 2.
Their margin of victory in the tournament thus far has been 10.3 ppg. The
Crusaders are now 6-1 ATS in their last 6 neutral site games, but just 3-8 ATS
in their last 11 games vs a team with a winning straight up record. Valpo is led
by Alec Peters, who averages 18.4 ppg and also leads the team in rebounding at
8.4 rpg, plus he hits 44.8% from long range and 85.2% from the charity stripe.
He has been red hot in the tournament as he has averaged 22.3 ppg and 8.3 rpg so
far. The only other player on the team that averages in double figures is Keith
Carter at 10.3 ppg. The best long range shooter on the team is Jubril Adekoya,
who hit 58.1% of his shots from downtown. The Crusaders are a decent offensive
team that comes in ranked 117th in the nation in scoring, putting up 75.6 ppg,
while also ranking 163rd in shooting overall, 112th from long range and 96th
from the charity stripe. The defense has been excellent for the Crusaders this
year as they come in ranked 9th in the nation in points allowed, giving up just
62.4 ppg, while also ranking 3rd defensive FG% overall and 79th in 3-point
defense. Valpo is is 6th in the nation in rebounding, while they commit 13.1
turnovers per game (228th) and force 12.9 turnovers per game (142nd).
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