Texas vs Purdue prediction: NCAA Tournament Second Round pick and college basketball game preview.
Texas vs Purdue Game Preview, How To Watch
Date: Sunday, March 20
Game Time: 8:40 pm
Venue: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, WI
How To Watch: TNT
Records: Texas (6 seed, 22-11)
Purdue (3 seed, 28-7)
Region: East
– NCAA Tournament Schedule, Predictions, Game Previews
Why Purdue Will Win
While Illinois was struggling with Chattanooga, and Wisconsin had a hard time against Colgate even with a home court advantage, and Michigan State had to fight to get by Davidson, and Indiana got whacked by Saint Mary’s and Iowa got booted out by Richmond …
Purdue played like a big conference team and owned Yale with relative ease.
The Bulldogs came up with some points, but the Boilermakers were always in control in the 78-56 win.
The offense wasn’t great from three against Yale, but it’s among the best teams in the nation on the outside, and it’s dominant on the boards inside. It all comes from its ability to move the ball around to get the right shot seemingly every time down.
Texas wins on defense, but Virginia Tech was able to hit almost half of its shots and was great on the free throw line. Purdue isn’t great on the free throw line, but it gets there as often as almost anyone in America.
In other words, Texas has to figure out how to score.
Why Texas Will Win
It’s not like Purdue can’t be slowed down, if not stopped.
Texas doesn’t slow things down, but it can play a deliberate style that relies on its suffocating defense. Just because some offenses are able to hit their shots – like TCU and West Virginia did a few weeks ago – it doesn’t mean Texas can’t find ways to win.
It couldn’t hit anything from three against the Horned Frogs, but made up for it by getting on the line. The D had a hard time against the Mountaineers, but the O was able to keep up in a shootout.
Purdue stalled against Michigan State and Wisconsin in losses a few weeks ago, and as good as the O is, it only came up with more than 70 points twice in nine games before the win over Yale.
Texas should be able to keep this in the 60s even if Purdue’s O goes off.
Texas vs Purdue: What’s Going To Happen
It was if Texas was waiting to get its season started.
For all of the worrying after a three-game losing streak and quick exit from the Big 12 Tournament, it just wasn’t that big of a deal.
It lost to Kansas and Baylor – no shame there – and it couldn’t get by a TCU team that has a defense, too – as Seton Hall just found out.
The Longhorns have a problem with the high-powered defensive teams and doesn’t seem to have too many issues with the good offenses.
Purdue wins when it doesn’t miss. It’s 20-1 when it makes 48% or more of its shots, and it’s 24-2 when it’s better than 44% from the field.
It’s 2-4 when it doesn’t make more than 43% of its shots. Texas has kept teams under that mark 22 times and has only allowed teams to shoot 48% or better six times.
Texas vs Purdue Prediction: NCAA Tournament Second Round, Lines
Prediction: Texas 69, Purdue 67
Line: Purdue -3.5, o/u: 134.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 2
Texas vs Purdue Must See Rating: 4.5
5: Derek Carr to Davante Adams
1: The Friday early session NCAA Tournament games