Hartford vs Baylor Picks and Odds

• Baylor is a 25.5-point favorite over Hartford on Friday in an NCAA Tournament South Region first round game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis
• Baylor has a #1 seed for the first time in school history
• The odds, lines and spread for Hartford-Baylor can be found below along with a preview of the game

Holding a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the first time, Baylor faces #16 Hartford at 3:30 p.m. ET Friday in a South Region first round game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Baylor (22-2) is coming off an 83-74 loss to Oklahoma State last Friday in the semifinals of the Big 12 Conference tournament. That ended a four-game winning streak for the Bears, who won the Big 12 regular-season title for its conference championship since capturing the now-defunct Southwest Conference crown in 1950.

Meanwhile, Hartford (15-8) brings a five-game win streak into its first-ever appearance in the NCAAs. The Hawks beat visiting UMass Lowell 64-50 in the America East Conference Tournament championship game last Saturday as a two-point favorite – but are big underdogs in this one.

Hartford vs Baylor Odds

Odds taken March 19 from DraftKings

Baylor Lost Late Lead in KC

Favored by 8.5-points, Baylor led Oklahoma State 65-60 with just under six minutes left. However, the Cowboys outscored the Bears 23-9 the rest of the way to hand Baylor just its second loss of the season.

Baylor shot 38.7% (29 of 73), including 21.4% (6 of 28) on three-pointers. Oklahoma State made 13 of its final 14 free throws.

Senior guard MaCio Teague topped with Baylor with 17 points. Junior guard Jared Butler was right behind with 16 points but was just 1-of-7 from beyond the arc. Junior guard Davion Mitchell added 13 points.

Ranked as the eighth-best player in the nation by KenPom, Butler is averaging 17.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.0 steals a game. Teague is scoring 16.2 points per game. Mitchell has averages of 14.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals while shooting 51.5% from the floor and 46.2% on threes.

Davion Mitchell's defense is phenomenal: pic.twitter.com/ctaworaBvq

— Kendall (@kendallkaut) March 17, 2021

Thanks to the strong guard play, Baylor is third in the nation in adjusted offensive efficiency with 123.4 points per 100 possessions, according to KenPom.com

Often overlooked are sophomore forward Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (6.7 points, 5.3 rebounds a game) and senior wing Mark Vital (6.0, 6.8).

Williams Sparks Hartford

Hartford is playing its best basketball of the season and senior guard Austin Williams is a big reason why. He has scored at least 20 points in three of the last four games after doing so only once in the first 19 games.

Williams had 20 points, eight rebounds and three steals in the America East title game. He is averaging 13.7 points and 6.2 rebounds, both team-leading figures.

What a feeling 🏆@HartfordMBB | #AEHoops pic.twitter.com/EIsEORbz0s

— #AEHoops (@AEHoopsNews) March 13, 2021

Senior guard Traci Carter added 16 points against UMass Lowell. Junior forward Hunter Marks scored 14 points and sophomore forward Miroslav Stafl contributed 10 points and eight rebounds.

Carter is second on the team in scoring at 11.8 points a game, but has averaged 19.3 in the last three games. He is dishing 3.4 assists and making 2.6 steals a game.

Marks has scored in double figures in seven of the last eight games after reaching the 10-point mark in seven of the first 15 games. With Hartford leading 39-37 midway though the second half Saturday, Marks scored seven points in an 18-4 run that put the Hawks safely ahead 57-41.

Sophomore guard Moses Flowers (11.6, 5.8) and Stafl (10.4, 5.6) are combining for 22.0 points and 11.4 rebounds a game.

Hey @hartfordmsoc…
Check out Miroslav Stafl’s skills on the pitch! ⚽️ #MarchMadness | #neighborhood | #FlyHigh pic.twitter.com/SuIYvzJJ4s

— Hartford Men’s Basketball (@HartfordMBB) March 16, 2021

Summing It Up

Baylor is clearly the better team. However, the Bears have been the losing side in three of their last four games against the spread while the Hartford is on a five-game ATS winning streak.

After playing six consecutive games against teams ranked in the AP Top 25, it seems logical Baylor could have a letdown. Thus, look for Hartford to make things respectable but the Bears to move on to a potentially difficult matchup with #8 North Carolina or #9 Wisconsin in the second round.

• Pick: Hartford +25.5 (-110)