NCCA Basketball Betting: North Carolina on fire and Jim Calhoun in hot water

Basketball / Nick Shiambouros / 28 March 2009 / Leave a Comment

Nick Shiambouros updates us on the NCCA where all his original picks are still in the mix and explains why Connecticut Huskies coach Jim Calhoun is under investigation.

Only eight elite teams remain in the battle for the NCAA championship as this historic tournament continues. The biggest story so far has been the controversy surrounding the Connecticut Huskies who beat Purdue 72-60 in a dominating performance on Thursday night. Coach Jim Calhoun is under investigation by the NCAA for the way he recruited player Nate Miles. The NCAA has very strict guidelines concerning player signings and this is not good news for the Huskies. I really hope this does not distract this team as they prepare to play Missouri on Saturday.

Missouri put in a huge effort on Thursday defeating Memphis 102-91 in a very high scoring affair for this level. I think Missouri will have a much tougher time scoring against Connecticut due to the presence of the great Hasheem Thabeet. I think Connecticut will take care of Missouri in a low scoring affair.

Vilanova played a superb match in upsetting Duke 77-54 in a one-sided contest to make it in to the last eight. Duke could not handle the powerful inside game of the Wildcats and will face Pittsburgh in a mouth-watering affair on Saturday. Pittsburgh had a very hard time disposing of Xavier 60-55 to reach the last eight and they will have a real fight on their hands against Villanova on Saturday. I selected Pittsburgh to make the final four but if they are going to beat Villanova they will have to shoot a lot better than they have in the earlier rounds.

The Louisville Cardinals steamrolled their way in to the quarter finals with a powerful display against Arizona 103-64. Coach Rick Pitino has this team firing on all cylinders and at this moment they look unstoppable. This team is shooting very well and combined with a strong defense, they look like the team to beat. Louisville will play Michigan State on Sunday after the Spartans staged a huge comeback to beat Memphis 67-62.

Oklahoma and the talented Blake Griffin finally ended the great run of the Syracuse Orange with a 84-71 victory late on Friday night. Syracuse can hold their heads up high after a fantastic season but they simply had no answer against this talented Sooner team. Oklahoma will meet the mighty North Carolina Tar Heels after they took out Gonzaga 98-77. Tyler Hansbrough and a healthy Ty Lawson were unstoppable inside the paint as this team wore down a brave Gonzaga team. When North Carolina play at this level they can beat any team in the country.

So far all of my final four selections are still in the tournament but this competition is just warming up. On Sunday night we will know who the final four teams are, but rest assured it will be a very long weekend.

Recommended Wagers:

Saturday: back Louisville; back Connecticut
Sunday: back North Carolina