Quick Picks with Coach Rick Bowe, CBB Picks, CBB Free Picks, CBB Predictions 3/18/25
- rbowe7447
- Mar 16
- 2 min read
NCAA TOURNAMENT
ST. FRANCIS (PA) vs. ALABAMA STATE (ALST -4.5, 139.5)
ALABAMA STATE ML
My almost hometown St. Francis Red Flash won the Northeast Conference tournament to advance to the Big Dance. Alabama State won the SWAC tournament to get here. Neither team was expected to do so, but one of them will move on to face No. 1 seed Auburn in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Alabama State has the edge on defense. The Hornets rank in the top 100 in forcing turnovers. St. Francis, on the other hand, ranks in the bottom 100 in turnover rate on offense. The Red Flash turn the ball over on about 20 percent of all their offensive possessions. Those stolen possessions are going to be the difference tonight. Alabama State has won 6 straight and tonight they make it 7.
NIT FIRST ROUND
WICHITA STATE vs. OKLAHOMA STATE (OKST -6.5, 155)
WICHITA STATE +6.5
Both of these teams were underrated in their respective conference. Each team had its share of struggles during the regular season. They also each had some quality wins along the way. Oklahoma State pulled off one of the bigger upsets of the season when they beat Iowa State late in the season. Wichita State had a nice six-game win streak late in the year that included a win over AAC conference champion Memphis.
Wichita State won 8 of its last 12 games and is 4-1 ATS in its last 5. That includes another near upset of Memphis in the AAC tournament. The Shockers lost to the Tigers 83-80, but did cover the spread in that game. I think the Shockers are a little more battle tested and can, at the very least, keep this game close enough to get the cover.
Ylose expert Coach Rick Bowe delivers his daily Quick Picks. The Coach continues to roll up big wins in college basketball, college football, the NFL, MLB and much more. Coach Rick offers a unique perspective to handicapping. Check out his daily free picks right here and jump on his daily Best Bets, which you can find right here at Ylose.com/coach.
