Northern Colorado vs. Cleveland State Prediction, Odds and Key Players for CBI First Round
The NCAA Tournament and the NIT are already underway. Next up to start is the College Basketball Invitational. The first game set to take place on Sunday is between No. 8 Northern Colorado and No. 9 Cleveland State.
The winner will earn the right to advance to the quarterfinals to take on the No. 1 overall seed, High Point.
Both Northern Colorado and Cleveland State finished the season with an overall winning record, but neither managed to win their conference tournaments. Still, the CBI gives them a chance to end their season on a high note.
Let's take a look at everything you need to know to bet on this game on Sunday.
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Northern Colorado vs. Cleveland State odds, spread, and total
Northern Colorado vs. Cleveland State betting trends
- Cleveland State is 0-6-1 ATS in its last seven games played on a Sunday
- Cleveland State is 1-4 ATS the last five times it was set as a favorite
- The OVER is 6-3 in Northern Colorado's last nine games
- Northern Colorado is 4-2 ATS in its last six games
Northern Colorado vs. Cleveland State how to watch
- Date: Sunday, March 24
- Game Time: 11:30 AM EST
- Venue: Ocean Center
- How to Watch: FloHoops
- Northern Colorado Record: 19-13
- Cleveland State Record: 20-14
Northern Colorado vs. Cleveland State key players to watch
Northern Colorado
Saint Thomas: Northern Colorado's entire team centers around their forward, Saint Thomas, who leads the team in points (19.7), Rebounds (9.8), steals (1.7), and blocks (0.9). If Cleveland State wants to win this game, they need to find a way to slow down Thomas.
Cleveland State
Tristan Enaruna: Much like Northern Colorado's Saint Thomas, Tristan Enaruna is the center piece of this team. He's averaging 19.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, both are the highest marks on the team. This game is going to come down to how Thomas and Enaruna fare against each other.
Northern Colorado vs. Cleveland State prediction and pick
Northern Colorado was one of the best shooting teams in the country this season, ranking 15th in effective field goal percentage, and I don't think CLeveland State has the fire power to keep up with them, The Vikings enter the CBI ranking just 219th in effective field goal percentage.
To make matters worse, Cleveland State has one of the worst interior defenses in college basketball ranking 346th in opponent two-point field goal percentage, allowing teams to shoot 55.1% from two-point range. The Bears can take advantage of this and attack the Vikings down low.
In what's set as virtually a coin flip, I'll back Northern Colorado on the moneyline to advance to the CBI quarterfinals.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
You can check out all of Iain's bets here!