Florida Gators vs George Washington Colonials NIT Tournament Betting Preview & Odds
NIT Tournament action on Wednesday night and we will see the Florida Gators take on the George Washington Colonials at the Charles E. Smith Center in Washington, D.C. ESPN2 will carry this game, which has a start time of 7:00 pm EST.
Current betting odds for this game have the Colonials listed as 2 point favorites, while the total has been set at 148.
The Florida Gators come in at 21-14 and have dispatched of North Florida by 31 and Ohio State by 8 points to reach the 3rd round of the NIT. They really look like they want to be in this tournament and have now won 4 of their last five games overall. They have gone 4-1 ATS in those last 5 games, but they are also just 9-24-2 ATS in their last 35 games following a straight up win. The Gators have 6 players that average at least 7.2 ppg and are led by Dorian Finney-Smith, who averages 14.9 ppg and also leads the team in rebounding at 8.4 rpg. John Egbunu is 2nd at 11.5 ppg and a solid shot blockers with 47 on the year. Rounding out the double digit scorers is KeVaughn Allen at 11.3 ppg. Florida checks in at 147th in the nation in scoring, putting up 74.3 ppg, but they are not a good shooting team as they come in ranked 251st in shooting overall, 294th from long range and 331st from the charity stripe. The defensive numbers have been solid as they come in ranked 89th in points allowed, giving up just 68.5 ppg, while also ranking 52nd defensive FG% overall and 164th in 3-point defense. Florida is 20th in the nation in rebounding, while they commit just 11.3 turnovers per game (55th) and force 13.2 turnovers per game (120th).
The George Washington Colonials have had a very nice season as they are 25-10 overall and they have been strong at home, where they are 15-3. They just didn’t do enough to make it to the big dance. GW made it to the 3rd round by taking out Hofstra by two points at home and then they won at top seeded Monmouth by 16. The Colonials have gone 8-6-1 ATS at home this year, but they are also just 1-7 ATS in their last 8 meetings with the SEC. GW goes about 10 deep, but just 5 of them average more than 5.3 ppg. They are led by Tyler Cavanaugh, who averages 16.7 ppg and hits 40.4% from long range. 2nd on the team is Patricio Garino, who averages 14.2 ppg and hits 44.4% from beyond the arc. Rounding out the double digit scorers on the team is Kevin Larsen at 12.1 ppg, while hitting 51.9% from downtown and leading the team in rebounding at 8.3 rpg. The Colonials enter the game ranked 116th in the nation in scoring, putting up 75.8 ppg, while also ranking 145th in shooting overall, 64th from long range and 17th from the charity stripe. The defensive numbers have been decent as they come in ranked 104th in points allowed, giving up just 69.1 ppg, while also ranking 159th defensive FG% overall and 141st in 3-point defense. GW is 73rd in the nation in rebounding, while they commit just 11.5 turnovers per game (70th) and force 11.9 turnovers per game (228th).
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