Diving into the Final Four showdown between the Villanova Wildcats and the Kansas Jayhawks on April 2, 2022.
After a wild and crazy NCAA Tournament that saw plenty of upsets and the greatest Cinderella run ever, we end up with four bluebloods in the Final Four in New Orleans and two very exciting matchups this March Madness.
Here, we’ll dive into the Kansas/Villanova matchup. This marks the second time since 2018 that these two have met in the Final Four and the third time since 2016 they’ll meet in the tournament. They also met in the Sweet 16 that year.
We know how both of those tournaments ended as Jay Wright’s team cut down the nets each time. Will the same fate happen this year? Let’s jump in and find out.
Villanova Wildcats vs. Kansas Jayhawks Game Info
Date/Time: Saturday, 04/02/2022, 6:09 EDT
TV: CBS
Location: Caesars Superdome – New Orleans, LA
Villanova Wildcats vs. Kansas Jayhawks Odds Analysis
Kansas (32-6 overall, 19-18-1 ATS) opened as a 3.5-point favorite across most books, but plenty of early money on the Jayhawks has pushed that number to 4.5. Most books have Kansas -4.5 with a -110 moneyline and the same for Villanova +4.5 (30-7 overall, 20-16-1 ATS), though BetRivers currently has a -108 moneyline for the same spread.
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As for the over/under, you can get a -110 moneyline on U134 over at Caesars, compared to lines of 132.5 or 133 elsewhere. Caesars is the only book at the moment setting the over/under at 134.
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Villanova Wildcats vs. Kansas Jayhawks Picks
Kansas -4.5 (-110) (BetMGM)
Under 134 (-110) (Caesars)
Villanova Wildcats vs. Kansas Jayhawks Predictions
Kansas -4.5 (-110)
Villanova put on a defensive clinic in the Elite 8 against Houston, as the Cougars just couldn’t get anything to fall offensively. Villanova wasn’t too much better, but they did just enough to win. Of course, as we know by now, the win was extremely costly and bittersweet, as Justin Moore suffered a torn Achilles during the win. Moore was Villanova’s second-leading scorer at 14.8 points per game.
Nova’s depth will be strongly tested against that of Kansas, with Moore being the second big injury Villanova suffered during this tournament after losing Jordan Longino suffered a season-ending meniscus tear during practice before the start of the tournament.
Kansas easily goes seven-deep, with seven players averaging 15 minutes per game and five double-digit scorers. The Jayhawks will likely wear down the Wildcats and move on to the National Championship.
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Under 134 (-110)
The under has been dominating the tournament, especially since the Sweet 16 and especially for these two teams. Villanova’s last three games and six of their last seven have seen the under hit, while Kansas has two straight unders and seven out of the last ten. With Nova’s depth being tested and potential fatigue setting in late, points may be at a premium. We’ll take Villanova’s under streak to reach four games.