Getty Liberty, who made the March Madness tournament via automatic bid
On the back of an incredibly strong regular season to go with their conference championship, the Liberty Flames make their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2013 and gain the honor of being granted the ever famous 12 seed. Mississippi State lost in the quarterfinals of the SEC tournament and draw the dreaded fifth seeth.
Mississippi State Bulldogs vs Liberty Flames Betting Line
(Betting Line and Total courtesy of Oddsshark.com)
- Mississippi State Bulldogs vs Liberty Flames
- Friday, March 22nd
- Point Spread: Mississippi State (-7.5)
Mississippi State vs. Liberty State March Madness Bracket Projection & Picks
Liberty is without a doubt one of the feel-good stories on the year. Built on excellent team defense and an old-school offensive approach, the Flames are an experienced bunch unafraid of any challenge. Going 28-6 on the season heading into the tournament, Liberty makes for one of the tournament’s scarier mid-majors. Offering strong play from both the guard and forward position, the Flames can score in multiple ways and are a team built to upset a Power-5 program.
On the big stage, the Nation saw how good Liberty Basketball is! #RiseWithUs
Meanwhile, Mississippi State comes in after losing to Kentucky in the quarterfinals of the SEC championship but remain one of the more well-rounded teams in the nation. Led by Quinndary Weatherspoon, the Bulldogs will attempt to overcome the dreaded 5-12 upset in the first round. Despite having ten losses on the season, the Bulldogs dropped four of those games to a combination of Kentucky and Tennessee, showing that they, for the most part, were able to beat up on teams not ranked in the top ten nationwide.
Despite the fact that Mississippi was able to compete in a very tough SEC, Liberty was incredible throughout conference play and have a well-rounded offensive game that should be able to help them score on the big stage. A very good team shooting the ball from deep, the Flames have a great chance to pick up this classic upset in a 5-12 matchup.
Pick: #12 Liberty Flames (+7.5)
Other Eastern Region Matchups
#1 Duke vs #16 NCC vs NDST
#2 Michigan vs #15 Montana
#3 LSU vs #14 Yale
#4 Virginia Tech vs #13 St. Louis
#6 Maryland vs #11 Blemont vs Temple
#7 Louisville vs #10 Minnesota
#8 VCU vs #9 UCF