Alabama vs. Grand Canyon: betting odds and predictions for Mar. 24

(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

March Madness continues with some second-round action between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Grand Canyon Antelopes. Both teams are coming off of dominant victories in the first round of the tournament and are going to battle it out for a spot in the Sweet 16 in this Sunday showdown in Spokane. We take a look at this marquee matchup to make an Alabama-Clemson prediction and pick.

Alabama (22-11) had a rough go of things coming into the tournament with just two wins in their last five games, with the momentum certainly not on their side.

However, they were able to battle through their last season woes and take it to the Charleston Cougars as they put up a staggering 109 points in a 109-96 victory covering the -8.5-point spread.

Mark Sears essentially put Alabama on his back with his 30 points in 32 minutes on the floor. Sears is going to need to keep the scoring onslaught up as well as get some more help from his supporting cast if they want to derail the Cinderella story that is the Grand Canyon Antelopes and get the Crimson Tide to the Sweet 16.

Grand Canyon (30-4) was one of the sleeper teams to watch out for coming into the tournament with an outstanding record recording 30 wins in their 34 games, with five straight wins as they met up with Saint Mary's. They came in as 5.5-point underdogs against the Gaels and took it to them with a 75-66 victory.

The Antelopes weren't quite efficient from the floor but their defense was on lockdown mode as they limited the Gaels to just 39% from the floor and 28% from 3-point range. They face a far stiffer matchup against Alabama but one they will fight tooth-and-nail against as they attempt to make their first Sweet 16 appearance in the program's history.

MARCH MADNESS: ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE VS. GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES FANDUEL ODDS FOR MAR. 24

MONEY LINE

• ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE: -245
• GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES: +198

SPREAD

• ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE: -5.5 (-115)
• GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES: +5.5 (-105)

OVER/UNDER (TOTAL)

• OVER 169.5 (-105)
• UNDER 169.5 (-115)

BEST MARCH MADNESS ODDS FOR ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE VS. GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES

• The Alabama Crimson Tide are -5.5-point favorites against the Grand Canyon Antelopes. FanDuel currently has the best odds at (-115)
• The Grand Canyon Antelopes are the underdogs by 5.5 points to cover the spread. BetRivers currently has the best odds at +6.5 (-109)
• FanDuel Sportsbook currently has the best odds for the total, which is set at 169.5 (-105) for the over, and (-115) for the under

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ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE VS. GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES INJURY REPORT

ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE INJURY REPORT

• DAVIN COSBY JR. - OUT INDEFINITELY - FOOT

GRAND CANYON INJURY REPORT INJURY REPORT

• NONE

WHY ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE WILL COVER THE SPREAD

High expectations were coming into this season for the Alabama Crimson Tide after turning their program around last season. Unfortunately, they didn't live up to the early season hype and struggled down the stretch as they came into the tournament. Luckily for them, they had an inferior opponent in the No. 13 Charleston Cougars who they were able to get past with relative ease.

Now, the Crimson Tide get to play spoiler when they take on the surging Grand Canyon Antelopes who are looking to be the next Cinderella story in this year's tournament. Alabama is certainly one of their toughest matchups of the season and rightfully so as they rank No. 1 in the nation in scoring averaging 90.8 points per game with a point-differential of +10.4.

The Crimson Tide is led by star guard Mark Sears who has averaged 21.1 points to go along with 4 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.7 steals per game.

He is going to need to do a lot of the heavy lifting in this game if they want to get through this stingy defense of Grand Canyon and Alabama's role players will certainly need to step up if they want to advance to the Sweet 16.

WHY GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES WILL COVER THE SPREAD

The Grand Canyon Antelopes have exceeded all expectations this season. Not only did they sport an outstanding 30-4 record during the regular season, but they went into the first round of the tournament as the No. 12 seed and upset the No. 5-seeded St. Mary's Gaels as a 5.5-point underdog in the matchup.

Now, the Antelopes are looking to continue their Cinderella season when they take on the high-powered Alabama Crimson Tide. While Alabama puts up lofty numbers, the Antelopes aren't too far behind as they average 79.5 points per game and they've also been very stingy on defense just allowing 66.5 points per game on the season.

Their star guard Tyron Grant-Foster averages 19.4 points on 44.6% shooting from the floor to go along with 5.9 rebounds per game. In their win against the Gaels, he led the team with 22 points and he will have to do much of the heavy lifting again in this matchup. If Foster can ignite this Antelopes offense and they can stifle this Crimson Tide perimeter shooting they can keep their Cinderella story alive.

FINAL ALABAMA-GRAND CANYON PICK & PREDICTION

This game has the makings of being a high-scoring affair between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Grand Canyon Antelopes. Unfortunately, for the Antelopes their Cinderella story ends here in the round of 32. While we do love a feel-good story, Alabama is just battle-tested and Mark Sears is going to have himself a game that will help get the Crimson Tide past the Antelopes, covering the spread, and into the Sweet 16.

FINAL ALABAMA-GRAND CANYON PICK & PREDICTION: ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE -5.5 (-115)

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