BPI Matchup Predictor Reveals WVU's Chances vs. Stanford in College Basketball Crown

The first round of the College Basketball Crown is officially underway, and tonight, the West Virginia Mountaineers will look to keep their season alive when they square off with the Stanford Cardinal out of the ACC.

Will this be the final game we see of the Mountaineers this season?

What the BPI says

According to the ESPN Basketball Power Index (BPI), West Virginia has a stunning 64.4% chance to win, while Stanford has been given just a 35.6% chance to win and advance.

Seeing the Mountaineers predicted to win the game isn't all that surprising, but the confidence the computer projection has in them is. The oddsmakers actually have Stanford as a small 1.5-point favorite in this one, and given how WVU has played this season, I'm not sure they should be a 60% or greater favorite. This truly does feel like a coin flip game, but one that leans toward the Mountaineers ever so slightly.

West Virginia's recent games

Despite the rough year, WVU still had plenty of chances to win games at the tail end of the season and make the NCAA Tournament. Instead, they hit a brick wall, losing five of their final eight games of the regular season and being a one-and-done in the Big 12 Conference tournament. The two losses to Utah and Kansas State are what really did them in. If they had won those and stolen one of the two road games against TCU/Oklahoma State, they probably would have made it. Their last time out against BYU was a horrible offensive performance as they shot 38% from the floor, 28% from three, 61% from the free throw line, and turned it over 22 times.

Stanford's recent games

The Cardinal were trending in the opposite direction at the end of their season, winning six of their final eight in the regular season, putting themselves on the bubble and a chance at the NCAA Tournament. Unfortunately, that all came to an end when they too were a one-and-done in their conference tournament, shockingly losing to Pitt. Winning two or three games would have put them firmly in the conversation. In that one-point loss to the Panthers, they were dominated on the boards (41-28) and in the paint (44-32).

West Virginia and Stanford will throw the ball up in the air at approximately 8 p.m. ET. You can watch the game live on FS1 or tune into MSN for the radio broadcast with Tony Caridi.