Busting Brackets
Fansided

NCAA Basketball: 2018 Emerald Coast Classic preview and predictions

By Justin Golba

WICHITA, KS - MARCH 04: Cincinnati Bearcats players celebrate after beating the Wichita State Shockers on March 4, 2018 at Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
WICHITA, KS - MARCH 04: Cincinnati Bearcats players celebrate after beating the Wichita State Shockers on March 4, 2018 at Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
DAYTON, OH – MARCH 14: Pablo Rivas #13 of the North Carolina Central Eagles passes the ball against Donte Clark #1 of the Texas Southern Tigers in the second half during the First Four of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 14, 2018 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
DAYTON, OH – MARCH 14: Pablo Rivas #13 of the North Carolina Central Eagles passes the ball against Donte Clark #1 of the Texas Southern Tigers in the second half during the First Four of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 14, 2018 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Western Michigan Broncos (3-2)

Western Michigan is 3-0 on the season in games that are not the Emerald Coast Classic with a good win over Oakland. Unfortunately, they dropped their two games in the first two rounds of the classic to Ole Miss and Cincinnati and lost both games by 26 points.

Seth Dugan is leading the team in points and rebounds with 16.4 and 10.4 per game respectively. He is the star of this team and they will need him to show it to come out this weekend with wins instead of losses.

Southern Jaguars (0-4)

Southern has yet to get their first win and have really struggled to start the season. They have played a tough schedule (Alabama, George Mason, Baylor and Louisville) but they have not kept these games close and have really not been able to do much on offense. They will need to shoot the ball at a higher rate and limit turnovers if they want to beat Western Michigan on Friday. They are led by Eddie Reese who is averaging 14.5 points per game so far this season.

Nicholls State Colonels (2-4)

Nicholls State has also played a tough schedule so far but have managed it about as well as possible. They lost to Louisville but stayed in the game most of the way and beat Idaho 83-80. They start this weekend with North Carolina Central and should be able to hold them off. It will be a huge confidence boost to them if they are able to secure two wins this weekend and come out .500 on the season. They are led by Jeremiah Jefferson who has an impressive stat line of .463/.408/.750 while averaging 17.7 points per game through their first six games.

North Carolina Central Eagles (1-4)

North Carolina Central just has one win on the young season so far, so it is imperative for them to get one or two wins this weekend to boost their confidence and find some identity heading into December. They have two starters averaging double digits through their first five games, Zacarry Douglas and Raasean Davis at 12.8 and 12.4 points per game. They will serious production from their two leading scorers and for them to carry the load.

Home/NCAA Basketball News