It Should Be An Explosive, Close Game Between High Point And Arkansas

High Point vs. Arkansas, 9:45 ET

By the end of today, we will have half of the Sweet 16 set. It makes me a little sad if we are being honest, because that means this is all almost over. I love basketball, and I don't want to have to wait until October for more College Hoops. The season goes by so quickly, and even though the weeks are packed with games now, I feel like we aren't getting enough. We aren't quite there yet, and I've got another look for us as we put a play out here for the Round of 32 with High Point taking on Arkansas. 

High Point is not a team that most people probably followed this season. Without looking it up, you're probably not aware of what conference they even play in. (I don't blame you, I didn't know it was the Big South right away.) But, this team did have a great year going 31-4, and they were explosive on offense. For the season, they averaged almost 90 points per game and held opponents to 70. I do think the defensive number is a bit more about their level of opponents, but it is still their number. In their opening round game against Wisconsin, they never looked rattled. Wisconsin had a 10-point lead at one point, and I was watching the game thinking it was over. Not so fast. There was a questionable call reversal after video review. I'm not going to say that was a major factor in the loss, but it was something. There were some crazy clutch shots from Chase Johnson, and even his very first two-point field goal of the season which came on a Badgers miss. How Wisconsin didn't get back for that was almost like a perfect storm for the Panthers as they got the lead and a stop on a bad layup attempt. They advanced to this one. 

  (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

Arkansas has looked surprisingly good lately. It seems like everything is coming together for this Coach Calipari-led team. They won the SEC Tournament over Vanderbilt with relative ease. They then beat Hawaii by almost 20 in their opening round game. It actually is fairly remarkable that they won the game by so many, because they didn't shoot particularly well. The team was 4-21 from three in the game, for just 19%. They did own the paint, though, which is what won them the game. They outscored Hawaii by 24 in the paint. It wasn't all due to offensive rebounding, either. Those numbers were close with Hawaii having 11 and Arkansas having 12. Darius Acuff Jr. had a good showing in his first NCAA action, putting in 24 points on 9 of 19 shooting. This really isn't a team that most people should want to face right now. They are firing on all cylinders. 

I don't know that I'd describe High Point as a Cinderella story, unless maybe they win this game. As mentioned, they have been good all season. Like so many other teams, they just haven't been noticed because they play in a conference that gets no attention. Arkansas has done a decent job of stopping opponents three-point attack, allowing under 30% of their opponents' points to come from deep. High Point is looking to shoot from deep, and the better way to attack Arkansas is through the paint. However, the Panthers do get to the line effectively. I think the spread is a bit too high, and I lean to the over. I'll put a half unit on the over 168.5 as I don't think either team will struggle to get shots and like to play with good pace. I also will take the points with High Point at +11.5 because I think they can at least keep the game close, especially if Arkansas struggles to shoot again. 

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