March Madness: Tennessee-Longwood live stream, broadcast info, line, odds, prediction
Fresh off of beating the Texas A&M Aggies Sunday to win their first SEC Tournament Championship in over 40 years, Tennessee basketball is set to take the court in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 3 seed. This will be the fourth straight March Madness event that UT is actually taking part in.
Rick Barnes’ team, ranked No. 5 in the AP Poll and No. 8 in the Coaches Poll, will take on the Big South Champion Longwood Lancers in the Round of 64. Longwood comes into this game 11 days removed from their most recent outing, having beaten the Winthrop Eagles 79-58 to win the Big South Tournament.
Both of these teams are red-hot right now. Longwood, which is 26-6 on the year, has lost one game since January, going 19-1 in that time and currently winning eight straight. The Vols, who are 26-7, have won seven straight and 15 of 17. Here is all the information you need for this March Madness matchup.
Tennessee Volunteers vs. Longwood Lancers
Thursday, March 17; 2:45 p.m. ET; Gainbridge Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Ind.
Broadcast information
- TV: CBS
- Live stream: NCAA.com
- Radio: Vol Network; WVHL 92.9 Kickin’ Country FM (Farmville, Va.)
- National radio: Westwood One
Gambling odds according to WynnBET
- Line: Tennessee -18
- Over/Under: 132
- Moneyline: Tennessee -2500; Longwood +1100
This is the first meeting in history between the Vols and the school from Virginia’s Prince Edward County. Longwood, which joined Division I in 2003, is playing in its first NCAA Tournament event at this level. Led by fourth-year head coach Griff Aldrich, they are enjoying their first winning season since 2008-2009.
Longwood’s formula for winning is pretty simple: three-point shooting. They hit over eight a game and shoot 38 percent from beyond the arc. Also, they get to the free throw line over 20 times a game and shoot over72 percent from the stripe. Isaiah Wilkins and DeShaun Wade shoot over 40 percent from three, and Justin Hill is their leading scorer.
If the Lancers can get red-hot and the Vols have one of those games where they can’t buy a bucket, this game could get interesting quickly. The winner here will take on the winner between the Michigan Wolverines and Colorado State Spartans in the Round of 32.
Prediction
Although the Vols’ offense comes and goes, their defense is a constant, and contesting threes is what they do best. More importantly, even if the offense comes and goes, Longwood has nobody playing significant minutes over 6’7″, so UT can just dump it inside all day.
dark. Next. Five keys for Vols vs. Longwood
Because of those two things and Longwood’s lack of defensive efficiency, which is key to beating the Vols, take Tennessee -18 in this March Madness matchup. Yes, they’ll cover that gigantic spread. It’ll happen with their dominant inside game, which will score enough to hit the Over 132 as well. The score will look something like this: Tennessee 95 Longwood 67.