The NCAA Tournament matchup that nobody saw coming featuring two teams nobody sent to the Final Four will tip off Thursday at the Garden, as Tennessee vs FAU will determine who will play the winner of Kansas State vs Michigan State with a trip to Houston on the line.
All of ESPN’s experts on their post-bracket reveal Bracketology show selected Duke to come out of this region! Duke will not be coming out of this region.
Instead, it’s between the Owls and the Vols for a spot in the Elite 8, with the historic tournament dominance (and muted swearing) of Johnell Davis attempting to overshadow the ridiculous Round of 32 performance by Tennessee’s Olivier Nkamhoua.
How to watch Tennessee vs FAU in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16
All of the NCAA Men’s Tournament games will be broadcast on the CBS family of networks this year, as well as TNT, TBS and TruTV.
Tennessee vs FAU will the second game at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, NY on Thursday night, and the tipoff time will remain approximate/pending based on the end of MSU/KSU. Pray for lack of a double overtime.
Date: Thursday, March 23
Time: ~9:00 pm ET
Channel: TBS
Streaming: NCAA March Madness Live
Announcers: Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson, Allie LaForce
Tennessee vs FAU NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 odds
According to FanDuel, Tennessee remains a somewhat heavy favorite:
Moneyline: TENN: (-235) | FAU: (+188)
Spread: TENN: -4.5 (-115) | FAU: +4.5 (-105)
Total: 131.5 — Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)
These odds may change at any time, but the books appear to favor Tennessee’s smothering defense, even without the excellent guard play of Zakai Zeigler, who’s out for the season.
Tennessee vs FAU NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 prediction
In order to halt the Vols, Davis of the Owls will need to come close to replicating his historic 25-10-5-5 performance in last week’s contest, the first time that statline’s been matched in NCAA Tournament history.
Probably can’t happen twice in a week. Right?
Right. Tennessee won’t get the same line from Nkamhoua, either, but Santiago Vescovi is an excellent ship-steadier, and they found a way to bully a more talented Duke team last week with both brains and brawn. Expect a similar rock fight with a similar result this time around.
Prediction: Tennessee 68, FAU 58