Tigers vs. Jayhawks Prediction The final game of the night will see the fourth-seeded Kansas Jayhawks take on the fifth-seeded Auburn Tigers. Which side will prevail and advance to the Sweet 16? Game Snapshot 849 Auburn Tigers vs. 850 Kansas Jayhawks Saturday, March 23, 2019 Vivint Smart Home Arena at 9:40PM ET TV: TBS Compare odds from multiple different online sportsbooks and shop for the best lines at our College Basketball Odds & Betting Page. Public Betting Information According to oddsmakers at BetNow.eu, the Tigers are a 2.5-point favorite on the spread line. The total sits at 147.5 points. As of Saturday morning, 56 percent of public bets are siding with Auburn. Check out our College Basketball Public Betting Page for the latest updates. Tigers narrowly avoid upset Auburn held on for a 78-77 victory over New Mexico State Thursday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as the Aggies' shot at the buzzer was well off the mark. The Tigers (27-9) were outscored 48-46 in the second half, but managed to hang on. Auburn shot 26-of-57 from the field, 12-of-31 from 3-point range plus 14-of-21 at the free throw line. Jared Harper paced the Tigers with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting including 4-of-8 from 3-point distance and 1-of-3 at the free throw line. He also dished out four assists. J'von McCormick accounted for 16 points, two rebounds and two steals off the bench. Chuma Okeke had 13 points, five boards and three steals. Bryce Brown added 12 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals. Jayhawks dominate Huskies Kansas earned a convincing 87-53 victory Thursday against Northeastern to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Jayhawks (26-9) outscored the Huskies 50-28 in the second half after leading by 12 at halftime. Dedric Lawson paced Kansas with 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting including 3-of-5 from 3-point range plus 4-of-4 at the free throw line. He also ripped down 11 rebounds. Devon Dotson tallied 18 points, four boards, two assists and two steals. Ochai Abgaji tallied 13 points and five caroms. K.J. Lawson added 13 points, two rebounds and two dimes off the bench. The Jayhawks shot 34-of-61 from the floor, 8-of-22 from 3-point land plus 11-of-12 at the charity stripe. College Basketball Betting Trends Auburn The Tigers are 5-12 ATS in their last 17 Saturday games. Auburn is 5-2 ATS in its last seven games overall. Kansas The Jayhawks are 4-1 ATS in their last five games overall. Kansas is 6-2 ATS in its last eight neutral site games. Prediction: Kansas has had an uneven season for Kansas standards, but has played pretty well lately aside from the Big 12 Tournament championship game on tired legs. The Jayhawks dominated a fairly decent Northeastern team in their tournament opener and I think oddsmakers plus bettors are undervaluing them right now. Take advantage of Kansas as underdogs here against an Auburn team that was one shot away from being stunned in the first round. NCAA DAILY PREDICTION: KANSAS JAYHAWKS +2.5<doc-sep>Auburn’s second-round matchup with Kansas will be a late-night affair. The fifth-seeded Tigers will take on the fourth-seeded Jayhawks in the final game of Saturday’s slate of NCAA Tournament slate. Auburn and Kansas will tip off after the conclusion of top-seeded Gonzaga’s matchup with Baylor at Salt Lake City’s Vivint Smart Home Arena, with a start time tentatively set for 8:40 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on TBS. Auburn is favored by one point, according to VegasInsider.com. The late start will be welcomed by Auburn, which played five games in eight days and felt the fatigue of that run during its first-round win on Thursday. Auburn advanced to the Round of 32 for the second straight year following a thrilling 78-77 win against 12th-seeded New Mexico State on Thursday. Kansas, meanwhile, moved on to the second round after cruising to an 87-52 win against Northeastern. Saturday’s matchup will mark the second all-time meeting between the two programs. Auburn won the only prior meeting, 66-64, in 1985 during the second round of that year’s NCAA Tournament. Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.<doc-sep>#4 Kansas vs. #5 Auburn NCAA Tournament Betting Odds Spread: Auburn -1 Over/Under: 142.5 Date: Saturday, March 23 Time: 9:40 p.m. ET TV: TBS Location: Salt Lake City, Utah >> All odds as of Friday morning. Download The Action Network App to get real-time odds and live win probabilities on your bets. The Tigers (18-16-1 against the spread) failed to cover their win over New Mexico State in the Round of 64, as Aggies forward Trevelin Queen missed a game-winning 3-point attempt at the buzzer. On the flip side, the Jayhawks (16-18-1 ATS) covered in a dominant 87-53 win over Northeastern. Which side presents more value in this Round of 32 matchup? Let’s dissect the most critical factors. Will Auburn Excel Within its Situational Spot? Coming off an loss ATS this season, the Tigers are 2-4 (33.3%) in attempt to cover the ensuing matchup. But their second win ATS came vs. Tennessee on Sunday, notching a 20-point victory after failing to cover against Florida in the SEC tournament semifinals. New Mexico State closed the game on a 16-8 run, aided by Jared Harper’s two turnovers in the final minute, so expect Bruce Pearl’s troops to come out revved up because it couldn’t put the Aggies away on countless occasions. Bill Self’s crew looks to be in a letdown spot after cruising past Northeastern in the Round of 64. Guided by a freshman-driven backcourt in Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes, there’s plenty of potential for a cruise control-like performance in the early goings of the first half. Tigers’ Perimeter Attack Kansas is allowing the 42nd-highest 3-point scoring rate (36.5%) in the country, yet Northeastern couldn’t take advantage in transition or half-court sets. Expect Auburn to be much better there and hit 3s. Pearl’s squad boasts the 23rd-highest 3-point clip (38.1%) in the country, as well as the seventh-highest scoring percentage (43.5%) from behind the arc. Tigers guard Bryce Brown never discovered a rhythm against New Mexico State, shooting just 2-of-8 from distance. Whether Self plugs Grimes or the fellow 6-foot-5 guard Ochai Agbaji onto Brown, he won’t have nearly as sound of a ballhawk as Harper, who will be dealing with Dotson. Moreover, Auburn and its offensive rebounding rate (32.3%, 55th-best in the country) should be a factor off its long misses from the perimeter. Kansas doesn’t have the size to keep Chuma Okeke & Co. off the offensive boards, either. Matching Up with Dedric Lawson The Tigers’ small-ball lineup isn’t equipped to handle the 6-foot-9 Lawson (19.1 ppg) one-on-one. He continued to prove how critical he is to the Jayhawks’ 29th-ranked Adjusted Offensive Efficiency (113.5 points per 100 possessions) against Northeastern. But Pearl’s unit will likely throw traps his way, with the 6-foot-8 Horace Spencer off the bench, to keep the Kansas big off-balance. It should be able to create havoc via that philosophy, as well, and Auburn is already manufacturing the highest opponents’ turnover rare (25.3%) in the country. The Jayhawks inexperience was on display in Big 12 play, accruing the conference’s second-highest turnover percentage (20.1%). Auburn forces turnovers better than anyone, and the aforementioned Harper, Samir Doughty and Malik Dunbar are in position to expose them in another area. Eli’s Pick: Auburn -1, but I wouldn’t bet it past Auburn -2.5. Sean Koerner’s Auburn-Kansas Projections Get point spreads for this game and every possible tournament matchup with our bracket simulator built by Sean Koerner, our Director of Predictive Analytics, a former oddsmaker and FantasyPros’ most accurate in-season fantasy football ranker from 2015-2017. Spread: Auburn -0.5 Auburn -0.5 Total: 143 143 Proj Score: Auburn 72 | Kansas 71.5 Auburn 72 | Kansas 71.5 Win Probability: Auburn 50.1% | Kansas 49.9% Editor’s note: The opinions on this game is from the individual writer and are based on his research, analysis and perspective. They are independent of, and may not always match with, the algorithm-driven Best Bets from Sports Insights.<doc-sep>
SALT LAKE CITY — Auburn avoided a meltdown. Kansas put on a beat down. Las Vegas does not see much difference in the two teams, however. No. 4 seed Kansas and No. 5 Auburn opened Thursday evening as a pick ‘em, but the line then quickly moved to favor Auburn by 1.5 points at sports books in Las Vegas. The two teams will meet in the second round of the NCAA Tournament after winning Thursday here in the first round at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Auburn survived a furious comeback attempt by No. 12 seed New Mexico State to win 78-77. Kansas advanced with a 87-53 demolition of No. 13 seed Northeastern. “It is one game, and certainly, you know, sets up a game in which we have to be as athletic and as in tune as we've been all year playing Auburn,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. Auburn led by eight entering the final 1:50 against New Mexico State, but five turnovers, mistakes, missed shots and free throws, and several Aggies baskets nearly led to a first-round upset. New Mexico State had two opportunities to win in the final 1.7 seconds, but the Aggies missed two of three free throws and a wide-open 3-pointer in those final moments. “Kansas or Northeastern are not better than New Mexico State,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “They're as good. A great compliment to New Mexico State. “Our kids worked hard to build that lead and we did not do a great job of taking care of the ball, but give New Mexico State credit for pushing us to the limit.” A tipoff time for the game Saturday between Kansas and Auburn has not yet been announced. It will be announced Thursday night. The Tigers and Jayhawks have met only once in history. The Tigers knocked off Kansas 66-64 in the second round of the 1985 NCAA Tournament. Auburn's Frank Ford had 23 points and Chuck Person scored 21 as Kansas' Danny Manning was held to 7 points. Calvin Thompson led the Jayhawks with 21. *** Try us for $1 and get the latest Auburn recruiting and team scoops *** *** Get FREE Auburn breaking news in your inbox ***