The High Point Panthers play the Arkansas Razorbacks in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday, March 21. Tip-off is set for 9:45 p.m. ET on TBS/truTV.
Arkansas is favored by 11.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -780. Meanwhile, High Point enters an underdog at +11.5 with a moneyline of +530. The over/under sits at 169.5 total points.
Here’s my High Point vs. Arkansas prediction and college basketball picks for Saturday, March 21.
High Point vs Arkansas Prediction
My Pick: Under 169.5
My High Point vs Arkansas best bet is on both teams to go under the total. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
High Point vs Arkansas Odds
| High Point Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+11.5 -105 | 169.5 -104o / -118u | +530 |
| Arkansas Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-11.5 -115 | 169.5 -104o / -118u | -780 |
- High Point vs Arkansas Spread: Arkansas -11.5, High Point +11.5
- High Point vs Arkansas Over/Under: 169.5 Points
- High Point vs Arkansas Moneyline: High Point +530, Arkansas -780
High Point vs Arkansas Kalshi Odds
If you want to trade on High Point vs. Arkansas, be sure to use our Kalshi promo code. The prediction market offers a variety of unique markets — including politics, weather, and culture — and is legal in most U.S. states.
High Point vs Arkansas College Basketball Betting Preview
High Point Basketball
High Point pulled off a shocker in the opening round against Wisconsin, as the Panthers — who trailed by as many as 10 points — mounted a second-half comeback.
High Point knocked down 15 3-pointers, fueled by four triples from Chase Johnston and Rob Martin.
The Panthers crashed the offensive boards and actually out-rebounded the heavily favored Badgers, 40-37. Wisconsin went through four stretches of scoreless basketball and found itself unable to put away High Point as a result.
Despite not forcing many turnovers, the High Point defense was disruptive enough to limit Wisconsin from blowing the game open. The Panthers were in a great defensive position and committed only 15 total personal fouls.
Squaring off against another high-flying team in Arkansas is going to test this defense, and another special performance will be needed to try to keep pace with the Hogs.
Arkansas Basketball
Arkansas dispatched Hawaii fairly easily in its first-round matchup.
The Hogs put up 97 points despite a poor shooting effort from 3-point territory. The long bombs weren’t falling — Arkansas went just 4-of-21 from deep — but the Razorbacks lived in the paint while shooting 70% from 2-point range.
Darius Acuff led all scorers with 24 points, while Meleek Thomas scored 21 and Trevon Brazile put up 19.
The Hogs defense really wasn't tested by Hawaii, which was down 10 points before you could finish your sandwich, and trailed by double digits the entire game.
The defense did well to keep Hawaii off the stripe and limited its 3-point production, as the Rainbow Warriors shot just 10-of-30 from deep.
While it's hard to anticipate the exact game script, the opening round went about as well as Arkansas could have hoped. The Hogs were never seriously threatened and didn't have the exhaust effort for the full 40 minutes.
High Point vs Arkansas Pick, Betting Analysis
This line opened with Arkansas pegged as an 11.5-point favorite with the total set at 169.5. I'm going to take the under here.
High Point was fortuitous in its opening round matchup against Wisconsin in that it caught fire from deep late, as Wisconsin had held the Panthers to just 62 points with five minutes remaining before a barrage of scoring allowed HPU to pull in front.
It took a heroic effort with 15 made 3s. I'm not sure that's sustainable against Arkansas, which had the second-best 3-point defense in the country during the regular season.
I'm not sure High Point can run with Arkansas and match the athleticism the Hogs have in transition. I imagine we get to a point where the Arkansas defense forces High Point to execute in the half-court more frequently than it desires.
This will slow the possession count and lead to more contested shots. Those shots went in against Wisconsin, but asking for another 15 3s is a lot here.
High Point actually played well defensively and forced Wisconsin into three long stretches in which the Badgers couldn't score.
Arkansas shot just 4-of-17 from deep in its opening round game, and while it's due for some positive regression, the increase might be marginal.
High Point did a good job of contesting Wisconsin’s shooters and forced it to play out of rhythm down the stretch. I think we see more of that here.
Arkansas isn't going to turn the ball over, and its defense doesn't force a lot of turnovers. High Point committed just six total turnovers in its opening round game, and if it can limit giveaways and points off turnovers, it will have a chance to be in this game late.
This will allow for longer possessions late in this game and for its defense to have a chance to secure stops, just as it did against Wisconsin. That will lead this game to trend toward the under.
My Pick: Under 169.5
