NCAA Tournament 2017: Experts are projecting a slim margin for Maryland vs. Xavier

As far as first-round NCAA Tournament matchups go, Maryland and Xavier are an interesting pair.

The Terps lucked out with a No. 6 seed, a shock after they’d been projected as a No. 7 seed in most places. The Washington Post’s Scott Allen investigated, and called them the most over-seeded team in the nation. Xavier, meanwhile, lost its leading scorer and limped into the the postseason. The Musketeers went from No. 29 to No. 40 in KenPom’s advanced stats rankings, but are still five spots ahead of Maryland.

This is to say, this game looks like a tossup. Let’s look around the rest of the internet.

FiveThirtyEight’s awesome live-updating bracket gives Maryland a 51 percent edge. KenPom’s metrics give the reverse odds to Xavier. ESPN’s Tournament Challenge participants picked Maryland the least out of any No. 6 seed (h/t Jonas Shaffer).

The Ringer has Xavier.

So does The Washington Post.

Our friends Callie Caplan and Kyle Stackpole at The Diamondback picked Maryland.

SB Nation has Maryland too.

In other news

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This is a good time to remind you to join our bracket challenge.

Maryland men’s lacrosse got a commitment from an EIGHTH GRADER.

Maryland women’s basketball is remaining confident after it basically got screwed by the selection committee.

Maryland is preparing for an “off the charts” challenge from Trevon Bluiett.

Maryland basketball players aren’t very good at golf.

For the Win ranked Division I mascots, and Maryland was in dead last. Seems harsh.

Maryland baseball had an eight-game winning streak snapped by North Carolina.