Ninth-seeded TCU of the Big 12 takes on No. 8 seed Seton Hall of the Big East in first-round NCAA Tournament South Region action from San Diego on Friday night. Which way to lean at BMR’s top-rated sportsbooks?
TCU Horned Frogs vs. Seton Hall Pirates
Friday, March 18, 2022 – 09:57 PM EDT at Viejas Arena
This NCAA Tournament matchup between South Region No. 9 TCU of the Big 12 and No. 8 Seton Hall of the Big East is scheduled to be the last-starting game of the entire first round, and truTV will have the telecast. Good look finding that channel because I sure don’t know where it is on my cable system. The winner will surely face No. 1 Arizona in the Round of 32, and I don’t see either beating the Wildcats. That Arizona reaches the Sweet 16 is -600 at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review) with no at +350.
Obviously, the No. 9 vs. 8 matchup is usually the most evenly matched of Round 1 in each region. Both No. 8s and No. 9s have swept all four games since 2015, with the 8s taking them in 2015 and 9s sweeping in 2019. Last year, the No. 8s were 3-1. The last 2-2 tie was in 2013. It’s rare for all four 8 seeds to sweep 9 seeds, and it has occurred only three times since 1985.
Join Now: Free March Madness Bracket Contest: $1,000 in BTC
No real surprise that TCU and Seton Hall didn’t play this season and in fact, this will be their first-ever meeting. The Pirates are +4000 at BMR’s top-rated books to win the South Region and the Frogs +5000.
TCU Hasn’t Won Big Dance Game in Decades
TCU coach Jamie Dixon has a history with Seton Hall going back to his Big East days at Pittsburgh. Dixon is 7-4 all-time against the Pirates. In addition, Frogs center Eddie Lampkin considered Seton Hall out of high school in Texas but chose TCU.
The Frogs did play one Big East team this season: Beating an awful Georgetown team 80-73 in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 18. Seton Hall was 3-0 vs. the Hoyas, winning by seven on the road, by five in New Jersey, and then by four in the Big East Tournament.
Not many teams will get an at-large bid when finishing under .500 in conference play, but TCU was only 8-10 in regular-season Big 12 action. The Frogs (20-12) may have been on the wrong side of the bubble if not for a 65-60 upset of Texas in the Big 12 Tournament opener before losing to eventual champion Kansas.
Join Now: $1,000 BMR 12-Week All Sports Challenge
Mike Miles is TCU’s best player, averaging 15.0 points, 3.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds. He was the only player to rank in the top six in both points and assists, and the sophomore guard was named second-team All-Big 12, just the fourth TCU player to ever be named All-Big 12 second team or better by the Big 12 coaches.
What this team does is rebound well as it ranks second nationally in offensive rebounding but it turns the ball over way too much, giving it away on 21.6 percent of possessions, which ranks 335th nationally.
“I think TCU can beat just about anybody if they play well. I love that team. I do. They’ve got great depth. Those players at 2, 3, and 4 are athletic. They can all do different things,” Kansas coach Bill Self said recently. “Defensively they’re interchangeable.”
Dixon will be making his 13th NCAA Tournament appearance in his 19 seasons as a head coach and second time with TCU. The team last did in 2018 and lost in the first round to Syracuse. TCU hasn’t won a Big Dance game since 1987 when Dixon was a player for the Frogs.
TCU is 6-2-1 against the spread on the NCAAB odds in its past nine games overall.
Seton Hall to Lose Coach?
Seton Hall (21-10) finished fifth in the Big East regular-season standings and lost in the conference tournament quarterfinal by 10 to UConn. Should the Pirates lose here, it could be the last game at the school for Coach Kevin Willard, who has been reported as a top candidate for the opening at Maryland. And, yes, Maryland is a better job than Seton Hall. Willard now has seven 20-win seasons in his 12 years at the helm of the Pirates.
Willard’s team played one Big 12 school this season, upsetting then-No. 7 Texas 64-60 in Newark back in December. TCU was swept by Texas in the regular season but rallied from a 20-point deficit to knock off the Horns in the Big 12 Tournament.
Seton Hall is led by All-Big East first-team selection Jared Rhoden, who is one of only three Big East players to rank in the top five in scoring (15.9 points per game) and top 15 in rebounding (6.8 rebounds per game).
Myles Cale has been playing for the Pirates since about 2010 it seems like and in fact, has played the most games in Seton Hall history (153) and the most Big East games (94) in the history of the conference. Ike Obiagu is one of the best shot-blockers in the country, averaging 3.3 per game. Guard Bryce Aiken was Seton Hall’s second-leading scorer but hasn’t played since January because of concussion symptoms and he will not return.
This will be Seton Hall's 14th all-time NCAA Tournament appearance, all of them coming since 1988. The Pirates are 16-13 all-time in NCAA games. Under Willard, it’s SHU’s fifth Big Dance appearance and the team is 1-4. The team last made it in 2019 and lost in the first round to Wofford.
The Pick
Simulations I have run have Seton Hall winning by about three points. The Pirates are 4-1 ATS in their past five vs. teams with a winning record. KenPom ranks Seton Hall three spots higher than TCU, for what that’s worth.
NCAAB Pick: Seton Hall -1 (-110) with BetOnline
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
