Point Spread for the Men's NCAA Championship: Kansas Favored Over North Carolina
Men's National Championship Point Spread and Odds
Point Spread: No. 1 Kansas (-4) vs No. 8 North Carolina
Moneyline: Kansas -180, North Carolina +160
Game Total: 153
Kansas, the only No. 1 seed to make it beyond the Sweet 16, played arguably their most complete game of the season in the Final Four. The Jayhawks, 4-point favorites, dominated No. 2 seed Villanova from start to finish en route to a 81-65 win.
In the other Final Four matchup, No. 2 Duke faced off with No. 8 North Carolina for the first time in the history of the men's NCAA Tournament. The Tarheels, 4-point underdogs, advanced to the title game on Monday night after upsetting the Blue Devils, 81-77, in Mike Krzyzewski's final game as head coach.
North Carolina, 5-0 Against The Spread (ATS) in the tournament, will now put their perfect 3-0 ATS mark as underdogs on the line on Monday night against Kansas who opened as strong favorites.
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Final Four Recap
Kansas Rolls Over Villanova
Villanova had no answer in the paint for Kansas big-man David McCormack who scored a season-high 25 points while adding nine rebounds.
Villanova, who held Houston to a dismal 1-of-20 (5%) from beyond the arc in the Elite Eight, allowed Kansas to hit 13-of-24 (54%) from three-point range tonight. The inside-outside game was simply too much for a Villanova club that was missing second-leading scorer Justin Moore. The versatile junior, who suffered a torn Achilles in the final seconds of the team’s Elite Eight victory, was missed immensely on the defensive end.
Bill Self’s game plan to get sharp shooting Ochai Agbaji involved early and often worked to perfection. The senior poured in 21 points on six-of-eight shooting, hitting more threes (6) in the victory than he had in the entire tournament combined (4). Agbaji was spectacular, scoring 12 first-half points, sparking a 40-29 halftime lead that Kansas would never relinquish.
Cousy Award winner Collin Gillespie gave maximum effort in his final collegiate game but Villanova’s limited rotation was outmatched against the size and depth of Kansas. The Big East Player of the Year scored a team-high 17 points, while forward Brandon Slater played his best game of the tournament adding 16 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
North Carolina Upsets Duke In Coach K’s Final Game
North Carolina advanced to the title game on Monday night after upsetting Duke in Coach Mike Krzyzewski final game.
Caleb Love was sensational for the Tar Heels scoring a game-high 28 points, while big man Armando Bacot was unstoppable down on the block. Bacot scored 11 points, but dominated the boards with 21 rebounds, 13 of which came on the offensive end and led to 22 second-chance points for North Carolina.
Duke struggled from beyond the arc shooting 5-of-22 (22%) while only converting 12-of-20 (60%) from the free-throw line. The Blue Devils once again received a solid performance from freshman Paolo Banchero who filled up the stat sheet with 20 points, 10 rebounds and two assists.
Mark Williams, who was tremendous for Duke this season, was in foul trouble most of the game, allowing North Carolina to control the boards 48-38. Limited to only 16 minutes, the talented rim-stopper finished with zero blocks.
Frankie Taddeo is a successful high-stakes fantasy football player who created the first-ever DFS program ever offered in a Las Vegas sportsbook. Frankie is SI Betting's Senior Analyst and provides his significant experience and resources in the sports betting scene. You can follow Frankie on Twitter @Frankie_Fantasy for his latest betting and fantasy insights from Las Vegas.
