Brendan O’Sullivan takes you through his preview, prediction and pick for today’s college basketball game between Yale and Pennsylvania.
The Ivy League championship is between No. 1 Yale and No. 3 Pennsylvania on Sunday, March 15 at noon ET.
The Bulldogs won both regular season matchups this year and get a chance to sweep the Quakers in the title game.
The Bulldogs are 9.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The game total is set at 142.5 points.
Here’s my prediction, preview and pick for Sunday’s Yale vs. Pennsylvania matchup.
Yale vs. Pennsylvania prediction, preview
Despite being just two games back in the Ivy League standings, Pennsylvania is a 9.5-point underdog for this game. It lost both regular season games against Yale and faces yet another uphill battle.
The Bulldogs are 24-5 overall with just one loss since the start of February. It’s an impressive streak that’s continued into the conference tournament. It’s necessary momentum as Yale is unlikely to be an at-large bid. Losing to Pennsylvania will likely end the Bulldogs’ season.
The flip side is a certainty. The Quakers won’t make the NCAA Tournament without the Ivy League hardware. TJ Power will need to step up if they want to go dancing.
Yale will likely ride Isaac Celiscar’s hot hand. He scored 27 points in the semifinal win over Cornell. A similar performance will be difficult for the Quakers to match.
Yale vs. Pennsylvania pick, best bet
The Bulldogs won both regular season matchups, but the second one was only by four points. The Quakers’ adjustment between the 17-point loss and the four-point loss is key. One may argue that it could continue trending in this direction, but I’d argue the opposite.
The Bulldogs may have underestimated Pennsylvania in the second matchup. After winning by 17 the first time, it’s possible the team let its guard down a bit. That won’t happen in the championship. Yale will be on top of its game.