(2) Michigan State vs. (1) North Carolina - Championship Simulation

MARCH MADNESS BETTING – XBOX Simulation 4/6

#2 Michigan State Spartans vs. #1 North Carolina Tar Heels 9:15 ET

On Saturday night, the last two teams standing will battle it out on college basketball’s biggest stage for the right to be declared champions. The Michigan State Spartans (31-6, 21-12-1 ATS) will be looking to cut down the nets just 90 miles away from their campus, but standing in their way will be the North Carolina Tar Heels (33-4, 16-19 ATS). Both teams have been hot in this tournament, as both stand 5-0 ATS coming into tonight’s online betting battle. Will the odds-on favorites to win it be celebrating at the end of the night, or will the upstart Spartans send the Detroit faithful celebrating into the night?

(click here for your printable March Madness bracket)

Which way will this contest go? Check out BetUS’s simulation of this sports betting affair…

1st Half

North Carolina made a clear statement from the get go, as F Tyler Hansbrough came through the lane for a thunder dunk just 11 seconds into the game to kick off the festivities. It was a sign of things to come for the guys in green.

Gs Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington hit triples on the next two possessions, and just a minute into the game, MSU HC Tom Izzo had to burn a timeout with his squad down 8-0. The Spartans didn’t get on the scoreboard until the 17:30 mark of the 1st half, but to make matters worse, the Heels scored on each of their first 7 possessions.

Before anyone knew it, Michigan State was behind 18-0.

Finally, around the halfway point of the first half, G Kalin Lucas began to assert himself and drew the Spartans at least a bit closer to the mighty Heels. He went on a miniature 5-0 run with a three, a steal, and a layup to force HC Roy Williams to burn his first TO, but UNC was still ahead by a dozen at the time.

F Danny Green stopped the mini-surge with a three-ball from the corner to re-establish the 15-point margin. C Goran Suton, who came off of a lousy game against Connecticut, was once again non-existent. He went 0/4 from the field in the first half, and finished with just one rebound and three fouls. F Raymar Morgan didn’t look much better, as the hero of the UConn game was held to just three points on 1/6 shooting in the first half. Hansbrough, Ellington, and Green all hit double digits in the first half, and the Heels went into the dressing room with a commanding 55-37 lead.

2nd half

Once again, the Heels were the aggressive team coming out of the blocks in the second half. Off of a missed Spartans shot, Hansbrough grabbed his tenth rebound and quickly found Lawson, who streaked the basket for an easy layup. Williams called for the press, and forced MSU into a turnover, which was immediately cashed in with another layup from the UNC point guard.

Every time the Spartans came up with a couple buckets, someone would drain a killer shot for Carolina. The lead was up as high as 70-47 at one point, and the spirit of the Spartans was crushed.