Charlotte vs. Eastern Kentucky Odds, Picks | CBI Championship Betting Preview (Wednesday, Mar. 22)

Charlotte vs. Eastern Kentucky Odds

Wednesday, March 22

5 p.m. ET

ESPN2

Charlotte Odds
Spread	Total	Moneyline
+5.5 -110	133.5 -110o / -110u	+195

Eastern Kentucky Odds
Spread	Total	Moneyline
-5.5 -110	133.5 -110o / -110u	-235

Odds via bet365. Get up-to-the-minute college basketball odds here.

There's nothing like the CBI Championship to gear you up for another huge weekend of NCAA tournament college hoops.

Charlotte takes on Eastern Kentucky for a shot to be one of the few teams in the nation that ends their season with a win.

The 49ers are laying two possessions in Daytona Beach, but the Colonels have been pesky this tournament.

Charlotte 49ers

Charlotte reminds me a bit of Virginia, as the 49ers play at an uber-slow tempo and use off-screen sets to produce open 3s. The Niners are 362nd in tempo and 22nd in eFG%.

Then again, the Niners also remind me of Penn State, with their utter disregard for second-chance points and free-throw attempts.

Whatever Charlotte comparison you want to make, the 49ers can score. They led the C-USA in eFG% and were fourth in the conference in offensive turnover rate, helping them win four of their six final regular-season games.

The Niners flamed out in the C-USA Tournament, losing in the first round to a good MTSU team by one. Ultimately, Charlotte couldn't defend well enough to be considered for an auto-bid.

The 49ers allow too many high-quality 3s and get back-cut to death. However, the tandem of Brice Williams and Aly Khalifa spearhead a surprisingly stout rim defense, even if the 49ers never registered high-level block numbers.

Eastern Kentucky Colonels

EKY is the opposite of Charlotte. The Colonels run the floor and crash the glass, and that's where almost every point comes from.

EKY is also a rim-reliant team on both ends of the floor. The Colonels are efficient attacking the rim and are top-20 nationally in block rate. They also take almost no 3s on offense and allow plenty on defense.

That said, the Colonels are sub-275 nationally in eFG%, are not efficient in transition despite the high frequency of shots taken there and allowed too many high-quality looks at the rim despite having solid rim protectors.

Then again, the Colonels were in every game and usually came out on top. This season, they finished 12-6 in ASUN play and suffered only two double-digit losses.

Eastern Kentucky's style of play is interesting but very tough to handle. How would you feel getting run up and down the court all day?

EKY finished second in the ASUN in eFG% allowed, so I don't think many teams felt good about it.

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Charlotte vs. Eastern Kentucky Betting Pick

This game features a wild contrast in styles. However, I'm going to lay the points in the CBI Championship.

Eastern Kentucky has played three overtime games in three days, including a double-overtime thriller last night. And given the Colonels' style, all three games were up-tempo, fast-paced sprint-fests.

The Colonels have to be exhausted.

And EKY will now play a Charlotte team that dictates the pace and won't allow the Colonels to crash the glass. If the Niners box out effectively and don't turn over the ball, it's curtains for Eastern Kentucky.

Meanwhile, Charlotte will get solid looks from the perimeter against a Colonels team that packs the paint. Look for the Niners to circumvent Williams and Khalifa with crisp passing and shooting.

Pick: Charlotte -5.5