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After a hectic first day in the NCAA Tournament, we are now in the second day of the Round of 64 matchups. It’s sure to be another day filled with drama and storylines.
Being a No. 1 seed, the pressure is on the Xavier Musketeers to perform. After losing in the Big East Tournament semifinals to the Providence Friars, Xavier will be looking for a bounce-back performance. Luckily for them, they were still able to nab a #1 seed despite the disappointing Big East tourney run in Madison Square Garden.
Xavier has found themselves as the top seed in the West region. As a team who many pick to be either in their Elite Eight or Final Four, it’s time to see what Chris Mack’s squad can do. It’s their first ever game as a #1 seed, and this year they won’t be the underdogs, it’s the complete opposite. The journey all begins in the 1 vs. 16 seeded matchup against Texas Southern.
It has been a whirlwind past couple of weeks for the Texas Southern Tigers. Despite finishing third in their conference, the Tigers rode a four-game winning streak into the SWAC Tournament. Then, they won three straight games, beating both the #1 and #2 seeds during the process. It wasn’t even close, as the Tigers whooped their opponents by double digits in each conference tournament game.
The dominant run in the SWAC came to a fitting ending in the championship game when they beat top seeded Arkansas Pine-Bluff, 84-69. The automatic bid wasn’t enough to get them directly into the Round of 64, and instead, they landed in the First Four. Again, the Tigers proved just how good they were.
They stomped the North Carolina Central Eagles 64-46 in the First Four. Texas Southern got a lot of offense that night against NCC, especially from star man Demontrae Jefferson. He led the team in scoring with 25 points and 8 rebounds while Donte Clark pitched in 18 as well. Now they have a date with Xavier.
How to watch, listen, or stream
Game Time: 8:20 PM ET
TV: TBS
Radio: 700 WLW (Xavier)
Stream: NCAA.com
Gamblin’ Odds
Odds: Xavier enters this game as a 21.5 point favorite (via Oddshark.com)
Record ATS: Xavier (21-12) || Texas Southern (11-4)
O/U: The O/U opened up at 161.5
Last Time They Met
This will be the first meeting between the two programs.