Notre Dame hosts Penn State in a second-round NIT game. Notre Dame is favored by five points, up from the opening line of 4.5. The Over-Under, or total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, is 140.5.
Viewing information
Location: South Bend, Ind.
Date: Saturday, March 17
Time: 12 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Stream: WatchESPN
Follow: CBS Sports App
Odds, picks against the spread
Oddsmakers opened this game at Notre Dame -4.5, reflecting the home-court advantage between two evenly matched squads. While Notre Dame breezed past Hampton in its first-round game by 21, Penn State struggled to defeat Temple by six.
Notre Dame Coach Mike Brey is a terrific motivator, and his team will be up to the challenge. Playing in front of a raucous South Bend crowd will also be an important factor to consider before picking either side of this matchup. Penn State is a tough road opponent, having knocked off Ohio State in Columbus and beating Illinois by 22 in Champaign. The Nittany Lions won't be intimidated by a little noise.
So what side of Penn State-Notre Dame do you need to be all over? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread top college hoops expert Josh Nagel is all over. The SportsLine analyst entered March Madness on a 16-6 run on college basketball picks. He is 4-1 in his last five Nittany Lions picks and 5-2 in his last seven involving the Irish.
About No. 1 Notre Dame
A devastating midseason injury to senior forward Bonzie Colson derailed the Fighting Irish's chances for ACC supremacy against the likes of Duke, North Carolina and Virginia. In 20 games this season, Colson is averaging a double-double of 19.9 points and 10.2 rebounds. The Irish also lean heavily on guard Matt Farrell, who knocks down 39 percent of his 3-point attempts. He struggled against Hampton, scoring nine points on 4-for-18 shooting. He'll need a much stronger performance if the Irish expect to advance to the NIT quarterfinals.
About No. 4 Penn State
First-round opponent Temple blitzed Penn State early, building a double-digit lead before falling 63-57. The Lions trailed entering the fourth quarter before pulling away with a convincing 19-9 run. Led by sophomore guard Tony Carr, who scores 19.4 points per game, the Lions are comfortable in a half-court offense. Carr was lackluster last time out, mustering two points on 1-for-12 shooting and 0-for-4 from downtown. Also expect a bounce-back game from Lamar Stevens, who was 1-for-6 from the field against Temple.
