Big South Conference Championship

Campbell vs. Winthrop Odds

The Big South conference tournament finale arrives Sunday, as the Campbell Fighting Camels face the Winthrop Eagles for the crown.

These teams face off for the third time this season. Winthrop won the first two matchups against Campbell. The Eagles triumphed in both games, with one finishing in a 94-76 rout. However, the other was a much closer affair, with Winthrop squeaking out an  84-83 win. 

In college basketball, it's very difficult to beat a team three times in a season. For that reason, it seems best to stay away from the Winthrop as 11.5-point favorites as of publication, just in case some weird madness takes place.

Winthrop Eagles | (22-1, 17-1 Big South)

Winthrop, which is an obvious choice for a team that could cause trouble at the "Big Dance," is looking to secure its status for an automatic bid in the NCAA tournament.

If the Eagles drop this game, there is far from a guarantee that they will be an at-large bid, considering the Big South is almost always a one-team conference for March Madness.

I'm expecting Winthrop to shoot the lights out and play at an extremely high level. Led by their jack-of-all-trades forward, Chandler Vaudrin, who averages big numbers in all categories, this experienced team will lay it all on the line to make the tournament. 

Vaudrin averages 12.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg and 7.0 apg this season, which is basically the NBA-equivalent of a triple-double. Vaudrin is a monster with excellent vision, rebounding IQ and scoring prowess. And his cohorts, Charles Falden and Adonis Arms, add a lot of experience and offensive production as well.

Winthrop always sets the pace, as it averages the 18th-most points per game in the nation at 79.5. The Eagles also shoot 22.3 free throws per game, which puts them at 27th in the country. 

The Eagles have an exceptionally high rebounding rate also, which is at 56.1% and seventh in the nation, per Team Rankings.

Winthrop sits at 99th overall in KenPom’s rankings, which honestly feels a bit off. The adjustment scale for its level of competition hurts it a lot, but its hope is that it gets this win, so that it won’t matter either way.

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Campbell Fighting Camels | (17-9, 11-6 Big South)

Campbell has been absolutely on fire, winning its last nine games. This streak could not have been more timely. They are paced by Cedric Henderson, who is averaging 15.3 ppg, and Jordan Whitfield (14.5 ppg) this season. 

During its winning streak, Campbell has scored an average of 69.8 ppg, while only giving up an average of 59.4 ppg. Most notably, the Camels have shot 43.3% from behind the arc, while holding teams to merely 29.8 percent.

Campbell has figured something out, and it is working. The Camels disposed of Gardner-Webb in their first tournament game, and then absolutely demolished Radford, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, in a 78-60 blowout.

Opposing teams are not scoring on Campbell how they were in the beginning of the season. As a matter of fact, in its past five games, the team has held foes to 58 ppg. From mid-December until the end of December, during its five game slide, opponents were scoring an average of 78.2 points per game.

Campbell has also had more success against the spread than Winthrop. Campbell has a 14-11 record, while Winthrop stays steady at 11-11 overall.

Other notable stats include Campbell having a 5-1 record ATS when getting four or fewer days of rest, while Winthrop has had trouble in that area, only going 4-6.  And of recent, Campbell has covered the spread in seven of their past eight games. 

Betting Analysis & Pick

Winthrop will surely win this game with its postseason dreams on the line, but Campbell will keep it close. The Fighting Camels have big winning streak going, which will end today, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be a nail-biter.

While Winthrop has stormed through this tournament with two wide-margined victories, expect a scalding-hot Campbell team to put up a fight. 

Go with the Fighting Camels at +11.5 points.

Pick: Campbell +11.5 | Play to +10