We’ve just scratched the surface of this year’s March Madness betting tournament and already we’ve been treated to more unexpected turnouts than few could’ve foreseen. Granted, some of the turnouts were expected, like seeing Nova beat out Mt. St. Mary’s by 20 points, but there were still some matchups that were much more shocking.
Latest College Basketball Public Picks & News
- Kent State vs. UCLA – Sportsbook Preview – March 17, 2017
- Bucknell vs. West Virginia – Sportsbook Preview – March 16, 2017
- Xavier vs. Maryland – Sportsbook Preview – March 16, 2017
Out of all the upsets we witnessed in the First Round of matchups, perhaps the most appalling was seeing Northwestern upset Vanderbilt in the first round. This was the Wildcats first appearance in the NCAA Tournament and it’s safe to say that they are making the best of it.
Vanderbilt vs. Northwestern Recap
When: Thursday, March 16, 4:20 pm ET
Where: Vivint Smart Home Arena, Sat Lake City, Utah
TV: TBS streamed the broadcast, as well as the NCAA Live Stream
NCAA Tournament Betting Line:
Vanderbilt entered as the March Madness Betting Favorite
The NCAA Committee had pegged the Wildcats as the 8th seed in the tournament and Vanderbilt as the 9th seed. Out of the two, Northwestern’s 23-11 record ranked superior to the Commodores (19-15). Interestingly enough, the Commodores are the first team in NCAA history to win an at-large bid despite with 15 losses. Nevertheless, Vanderbilt has been eliminated and their 2016-17 record will be cemented at 19-16.
Bryant McIntosh was a key component for Northwestern Thursday evening, leading the team in points with an eye-catching 25. McIntosh also got a good dose of help from Scottie Lindsey, who paved the way for a Wildcats victory with 14 points. Dererk Pardon also put up 14 points for Northwestern. The Wildcats will prepare to face No. 1 seed Gonzaga on Saturday, and they’ll be hoping to upset the NCAA Tournament betting lines once again.
Another intriguing fact about this contest is the fact that the Commodores’ leading scorer happened to come off the bench. Matthew Fisher-Davis led Vanderbilt with 22 points on 31 minutes of playing time. Second in points for Vanderbilt was Luke Kornet who was able to drain 14 points in 34 minutes of playing time. Lastly, the Commodores had another double-digit point scorer Thursday afternoon; Riley LaChance was able to put up 12 points for the losing team.
2016-17 Vanderbilt Commodores
Now that the Commodores season has officially concluded, Vanderbilt can look back and analyze all that they’ve accomplished. Although they weren’t able to improve on their last season’s record, the Commodores still enjoyed a healthy dose of success that was good enough to earn them a ticket to the Big Show.
Although they didn’t make it past the March Madness betting first round, Bryce Drew was still able to prove that he’s the right man for the job in just his first year. In the SEC standings, Vanderbilt tied for a 5th place finish after amassing a 10-8 record in conference play.
