Arkansas and Vermont square off in first round of NCAA Tournament
Vermont Catamounts (28-5, 17-1 America East) vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (25-8, 13-5 SEC)
Buffalo, New York; Thursday, 9:20 p.m. EDT
LINE: Arkansas -5.5; over/under is 139.5
BOTTOM LINE: The No. 17 Arkansas Razorbacks square off against the Vermont Catamounts in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Razorbacks have gone 13-5 against SEC opponents. Arkansas is ninth in the SEC in team defense, allowing 68.5 points while holding opponents to 41.1% shooting.
The Catamounts are 17-1 in America East play. Vermont averages 74.9 points while outscoring opponents by 14.6 points per game.
TOP PERFORMERS: JD Notae is scoring 18.4 points per game with 4.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists for the Razorbacks. Stanley Umude is averaging 9.4 points over the last 10 games for Arkansas.
Ryan Davis is scoring 17.2 points per game with 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists for the Catamounts. Ben Shungu is averaging 14.4 points and 4.3 rebounds while shooting 53.9% over the past 10 games for Vermont.
LAST 10 GAMES: Razorbacks: 7-3, averaging 72.8 points, 32.0 rebounds, 12.0 assists, 7.5 steals and 4.0 blocks per game while shooting 41.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.7 points per game.
Catamounts: 9-1, averaging 83.7 points, 35.4 rebounds, 18.2 assists, 6.4 steals and 1.5 blocks per game while shooting 54.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 48.8 points.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by
