Georgia vs Seton Hall Odds & Pick: Why to Bet the Pirates

Call it meaningless, call it what you want, but these two teams are here to win a championship. Seton Hall and Georgia are two perfect programs to meet at Hinkle Fieldhouse for the NIT semifinals.

The Pirates and Bulldogs both play an extremely physical brand of basketball, and Georgia head coach Mike White and Seton Hall head coach Shaheen Holloway are both great motivators.

Georgia had no business qualifying for the NCAA Tournament and probably didn't expect to be invited to the NIT either. But after a few teams declined invites, the Bulldogs seized the moment.

This team has been through an absolute gauntlet in the NIT thus far. It won its first two games as 8- and 7-point underdogs before following that up with a narrow win at home against Xavier.

Georgia will have its hands full with Seton Hall, as the Pirates play a different brand of basketball than the first three teams the Bulldogs defeated. Although Georgia can get a tad scrappy, Seton Hall will be on another level.

The Bulldogs' path to success is ramping up the pace. Seton Hall will try to slow play on offense, press and rebound. If Georgia can score in transition at a high rate, it'll find success.

The Bulldogs have had a different leading scorer in three straight games, which tells me they're not scared to spread the ball and have multiple avenues to score a bucket when they need it.

A team with no "star" is sometimes a great thing.

Seton Hall is playing this tournament with something to prove. The Pirates were snubbed from the NCAA Tournament — at least that was the narrative around the country. Seton Hall was one of the only teams to defeat top-seeded UConn, and played well enough down the stretch to make the Big Dance.

Clearly, the Pirates are here to win. As mentioned above, they're an extremely physical and motivated bunch and have shown that to start the NIT. After getting by Saint Joseph's by just three, they defeated North Texas and UNLV by a combined 37 points.

The Pirates are an extremely suffocating team that will burn you on the glass. They also have a guard in Kadary Richmond who can score off the jump and off the dribble. He's a game-changer and will be the best player on the court.

Seton Hall has played much more stress-free games than Georgia has to this point. The Bulldogs have been through the ringer and have yet to catch a breath.

That's a terrible combo when facing a team like Seton Hall.

The Pirates will capitalize on every mistake and be first to every loose ball. I do expect this game to be close, but the edge is with the Pirates. They'll have the best player on the floor and have more motivation.

Lay the points with Seton Hall.

Pick: Seton Hall -4.5