2022 NCAA Tournament First Round: No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats vs. No. 15 Saint Peter’s Peacocks
How to Watch:
- Date: Thursday, March 17
- Time: 7:10 p.m. ET
- Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN
- TV: CBS
- Live Stream: NCAA.com
Tale of the Tape:
| No. 2 UK | STAT | No. 15 SPU |
| SEC | Conference | MAAC |
| 26-7 | Record | 19-11 |
| 79.5 (18th) | Points Per Game | 66.9 (332nd) |
| 66.0 | Points Allowed Per Game | 61.8 |
| 0.633 (9th) | RPI | 0.5471 (85th) |
| 29th | Strength of Schedule | 212th |
| At-Large Bid | Bid | Automatic Bid |
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Kentucky leaders:
- Oscar Tshiebwe F, JR: 17.0 PPG, 15.1 RPG, 1.8 SPG, 1.6 BPG, 60.2% FG
- TyTy Washington, G, FR: 12.8 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 4.0 APG, 1.3 SPG
Saint Peter’s leaders:
- Daryl Banks III, G, JR: 11.7 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 1.5 APG, 1.1 SPG
- KC Ndefo, F, SR: 10.6 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.2 APG, 2.7 BPG
Odds, Lines, and Past Performance:
- UK Moneyline: -3800
- SPU Moneyline: +1600
- Spread: UK -18
- Over/Under: 131.5
- ATS Record: UK 14-18-1, SPU 19-9-1
- Over/Under Record: UK 16-17, SPU 11-18
Odds courtesy of Draftkings. For the latest odds, click here.
The Pick:
- So the Peacocks are the best team in the tournament against the spread during the regular season, which is, I guess, something, but I’m not entirely sure that means it will carry over into the Big Dance.
- However, both teams have also trended towards the under during the year, which might be a decent play here, since the game should be slow. The Wildcats play at the 155th adjusted tempo in the nation, while the Peacocks come in 242nd. The underdogs will likely try to limit possessions to prevent the favorites from pulling away, but we just can’t be sure how effective they will be.
- The Wildcats have only lost to one team this season that was not a top-25 team, so falling short in this game would be supremely unlikely. They have struggled to get TyTy Washington back into a rhythm of late, but this is the perfect game to work that out.
