Oral Roberts Golden Eagles vs. Arkansas Razorbacks Betting Preview
As the Sweet 16 gets started on Saturday, one notable matchup features a David versus Goliath situation as the No. 15 Oral Roberts Golden Eagles take on the No. 3 Arkansas Razorbacks. This game will be played at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, with tipoff scheduled for 7:25 pm ET.
After beating both No. 2 Ohio State and No. 7 Florida, the Golden Eagles are living the Cinderella story. In their 81-78 win over Florida, forward Kevin Obanor and guard Max Abmas combined for 54 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists. They will need to continue to play that well if they want to take down the Razorbacks.
Speaking of Arkansas, their road to the Sweet 16 included wins over No. 14 Colgate (85-68) and No. 6 Texas Tech (68-66). In the win over Texas Tech, the Razorbacks had four players score in double digits, led by forward Justin Smith, who had 20 points, six rebounds, and two assists.
The Razorbacks are overwhelming favorites to win this one. They are -620 to win while the Golden Eagles’ moneyline sits at +460. The spread features Oral Roberts +11.5 while the over/under for total points is 159.
By The Numbers
Offensively, Arkansas has been one of the best scoring teams in the nation this season. They rank 5th in scoring averaging 82 points per game. Oral Roberts ranks 18th, averaging 79.3 points.
Defensively, once again, it is the Razorbacks with the advantage. They rank 169th in the nation allowing an average of 70.4 points per game. Oral Roberts falls to 308th overall, allowing 77.4 points per game.
Oral Roberts Keeping Hope Alive
Coming into Saturday, the Golden Eagles have won seven games in a row, and they are hoping an eighth win will get them to the Elite 8. What is crazy is that during the regular season, Oral Roberts finished fourth in the Summit League, but a strong run through the conference tournament has propelled to a strong start in the NCAA tournament.
The Golden Eagles have two elite scorers in guard Max Abmas and forward Kevin Obanor. Abmas leads the team in scoring (24.5 points), assists (3.8), and steals (1.5). He is also adding 3.3 rebounds per game.
For Obanor, he is averaging 19 points on 50.1% shooting while adding 9.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists.
Arkansas Wants To Close Book On Fairytale
Given the quality of teams that Oral Roberts beat in the first weekend, they proved that they cannot be looked past. Still, Arkansas is hoping to put an end to the Cinderella story on Saturday.
Leading the way for the Razorbacks this season is freshman guard Moses Moody. On the season, he has averaged 17.1 points on 44.7% shooting. He is also averaging 5.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.1 steals per game.
The Razorbacks have three other players also averaging double digits. Justin Smith (13.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals), JD Notae (13.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.5 steals), and Jalen Tate (10.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists) have all played well this season.
Arkansas Wins, But Can They Cover?
If the first round of the tournament has shown us anything, it is to expect the unexpected. Still, in what has been a tournament full of upsets, Arkansas still seems like a tough out for Oral Roberts.
While the Golden Eagles play well on offense, their defense has been horrid this season. On Saturday, they have to take that bad defense against one of the best offenses in the nation.
There is also the week off factor. While Oral Roberts played hot through the first weekend, the time off between rounds could hurt their momentum. 11.5 points seems like a lot to spot anyone in the Sweet 16, but I still like Arkansas to win and win big in this one.
