Charleston vs Auburn 3/16/18 - NCAA Tournament Picks & Predictions

The Charleston Cougars shared the CAA regular season championship and erased a 17-point second half deficit to stun Northeastern 83-76 in overtime in the tournament finals and punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament. Charleston has won 50 basketball games the last two seasons and is a veteran, athletic squad that Auburn should not take lightly. Auburn shared the SEC regular season title with Tennessee but stumbled in its first game of the SEC tournament, getting manhandled 81-63 by Colin Sexton and rival Alabama in the quarterfinals. Charleston coach Earl Grant is a rising star in the business. The Cougars were 87th in the nation in offensive efficiency, committing turnovers on only 14.7 percent of possessions (11th). Charleston scores 75.1 ppg, hitting 36 percent of 3s and 52 percent of 2. Joe Chealey is a tough 5th-year senior point guard (18.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 4.6 apg), who shot more than 240 free throws this season. Grant Riller (18.7 ppg) is a scoring machine, who hit 62 percent of 2s and 42 percent of 3s. Jarrell Brantley adds 17 ppg and seven rpg. Charleston allows 68.8 ppg and is 167th in defensive efficiency.

Auburn scores 83.4 ppg and allows 73.3 ppg. The Tigers are 16th in offensive efficiency and 44th in defensive efficiency. Mustapha Heron leads the Tigers with 16.6 ppg and 5.5 rpg, Bryce Brown delivers 16.2 ppg and Jared Harper contributes 13.7 ppg. DeSean Murray is only 6-3, but was one of the best rebounders in the SEC, hauling down 6.8 per game.