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Oregon v North Carolina: Predictions on Point Spread and Totals

Every year armchair fans across the USA and further afield complete a March Madness bracket in which they predict the teams that will progress in the tournament. Tens of millions filled in online brackets this year and just 0.000003% anticipated that we would see North Carolina, Gonzaga, Oregon and South Carolina in the Final Four, illustrating what a rollercoaster ride this competition really is. Earlier this week we previewed Gonzaga v South Carolina, a game Gonzaga is expected to win, so now we move on to North Carolina v Oregon, which is a little closer in the betting lines.

Oregon Ducks v North Carolina Tar Heels

North Carolina was the favourite before the start of the tournament and has justified that status by cruising through to the Final Four. The Tar Heels have had to do it the hard way, overcoming second-seeded Kentucky in the Elite Eight and a very strong Butler team in the Sweet Sixteen. North Carolina is still the outright favourite to win the NCAA Championship (6/4 with SkyBet, compared to 13/8 at Ladbrokes on Gonzaga, 5/1 at BetVictor on Oregon and 9/1 at William Hill on South Carolina) and with good reason. The Tar Heels are by far and away the most experienced team left standing in this tournament.

Last year North Carolina suffered the heartbreak of losing to a three-point buzzer beater in the Championship Game against Villanova, and their four leading scorers this time around – Justin Jackson, Joel Berry II, Kennedy Meeks and Isaiah Hicks – all played a part in last year’s run to the final. They have tasted what it feels like to be runner-up and will be desperate to go one better this time around. In Roy Williams, they have a coach making his ninth appearance in the Final Four. None of the other three coaches left has ever been this far before. Third-seeded Oregon beat very good teams in Rhode Island and Michigan to reach the Elite Eight and then surprised everybody with a 14-point win over top-seeded Kansas. It has proved it can frustrate and beat the sport’s best offensive teams and will be very dangerous, especially due to the confidence gained from upsetting Kansas. The outright looks close to call, and UNC may shade it, but Oregon +5.5 at 5/6 with Betfred looks a really good bet. Kansas was considered by many the best team in the tournament and Oregon shut it down completely, so it could well do a similar job on UNC.

Prop Bets

This being a big game there are all sorts of weird and wonderful specials bets, from guessing the winning margin to whether the points in a particular half will be odd or even. The crazier ones are best avoided, but the traditional total points look good in this game. They are both strong offensive sides, but this is such a good game that it should prove a cautious affair under 153.5 points at 5/7 with Bet365 looks good.

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