The NCAA Sweet 16 begins on Thursday night when the third-seeded Miami Hurricanes take on the second-seeded Villanova Wildcats. The game will be played inside the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky and it has a start time of 7:10 p.m., where it will be televised nationally on CBS. Currently thebetting odds for the game have the Wildcats favored by a couple of points to pick up the win.

Villanova has exceeded expectations to this point in the tournament, Jay Wright teams have fallen victim to the early exit in recent years. This Wildcat team has crushed both of its opponents to date, though, beating UNC Asheville by 30 and Iowa by 19 in a game that was never in doubt.

Miami comes in with a couple of closer wins, beating Buffalo by seven in the opening round and Wichita State by eight points in the second. The Hurricanes have an experienced team that features one of the best point guards in Angel Rodriguez, but Villanova’s guards can defend.

The Wildcats had the top-scoring defense in the country during the regular season, but this game looks like it could be of the up-and-down variety. Both teams can score and rank inside the Top 15 nationally in offensive efficiency ratings, Villanova is just a little bit better on the defensive end.

The line is short, but that isn’t a big surprise given Villanova’s struggles in past tournaments and Miami’s veteran team. This should be a great contest to open Sweet 16 play.

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