The NIT Tournament continues tonight with the quarterfinals between the Miami Hurricanes and the Richmond Spiders. The game is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. start time and it will be televised nationally on ESPN. Currently the NIT Tournament Betting Odds for the game have the Spiders favored to pick up the win at home.
Miami narrowly missed the NCAA Tournament and could have gone into the NIT sulking and feeling sorry for themselves, but the Hurricanes have responded well. A second seed in the tournament, tonight they take on the top-seeded Richmond squad on the Spiders' home court with the winner heading to Madison Square Garden and the semifinals of the tournament.
Miami beat NC Central and Alabama in their opening two games this tournament, both close contests that were played on the Hurricanes' home floor. The NIT allows the higher seed to host the tournament games up until the semifinals and this will be the third straight game the Spiders are hosting in the tournament. Richmond knocked off St. Francis (Brooklyn) and Arizona State in a couple of close games as well, beating St. Francis by 10 points and Arizona State by six in their most recent game.
For the season Richmond was pretty solid in home games, picking up 14 wins in their 17 contests, including the two NIT games. Miami, on the other hand, has not been a good team on the road this season but did suffer from tough games against Notre Dame, Florida State and Louisville. The Hurricanes stumbled to a 7-4 away from their own gym.
Angel Rodriguez played against NC Central in the opening NIT game, but didn't see the floor against Alabama. Coach Jim Larranaga said he's still unexpected to see the floor tonight, which can certainly hinder the Hurricanes' chances of winning. If Rodriguez plays, Miami has a very good chance to win, but he's currently listed as doubtful.
In Richmond's win over Arizona State three starters ended in double figures, led by Kendall Anthony with 21 points. TJ Cline tossed in 19 while Terry Allen had 17 as the Spiders had balanced scoring despite not shooting well from the 3-point line. Richmond got killed on the boards in that one and they haven't been a good rebounding team all season. Miami isn't much better on the boards either, so the team that wins that battle could have an advantage tonight.
Richmond picks up the win and advances because of their solid play at home. The balanced scoring on offense will be key for the Spiders tonight.
Free Pick: Richmond 70, Miami 65
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