Friday, March 21, 3:55 PM on TBS

PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina

Opening Lines & Odds - Memphis -3 -- Over/Under: 142

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A lot of pundits have Memphis as a dark horse candidate to make a deep run in the 2014 NCAA tournament but oddsmakers hint of a slight upset in the 8/9 matchup by making the Tigers only 3 point favorites. The 24-8 George Washington Colonials limped down the stretch but actually have 4 wins over tournament teams on the 2013/14 season.

Memphis has a talented roster featuring Joe Jackson and Shaq Goodwin but it hasn't always equated to wins over the season. The Tigers have slumped at an inopportune time by losing 4 of their last 8 including an opening round loss to UConn in the AAC Tournament as 2.5 point favorites. If the 6'1” Jackson and 6'9” Goodwin can get on track Memphis will have an inside out presence that could take them to the Sweet 16 or farther. Unfortunately they've both struggled down the stretch with Jackson scoring only 10 points in the conference tourney game and Goodwin missing double figures in the last four games.

George Washington looks to regain the magic that accompanied them on their Sweet 16 run way back in 1993. Since then they only have two tournament wins and are just now making their first appearance since 2007. The Colonials are successful when they have balance like in the 85-77 victory over UMass in the opening round of the A10 Conference Tournament in which all 5 starters tallied double figures in scoring. GW is young with 3 sophomores in the starting lineup but coach Mike Lonergan has the Colonials on a roll. They've posted wins in 5 of 7 games and are getting a boost from the return of 2nd leading scorer Kethan Savage coming back from a foot injury.

ATS Trends

Memphis is 16-13-0 ATS this season

Memphis is 10-17-0 against the over/under this season

George Washington is 17-10-0 ATS this season

George Washington is 12-13-0 against the over/under this season

Injuries to Watch

Memphis

No Key Injuries to Report

George Washington

No Key Injuries to Report

Tony's Pick: Take Memphis

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