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CAA Championship Game preview: No. 8 Elon vs. No. 6 Drexel

We go over how you can watch Tuesday’s Colonial Athletic Association title game, as well has how you should be against the spread.

By Ameer Tyree

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Drexel Dragons forward Mate Okros shoots against Pittsburgh Panthers guard Xavier Johnson during the second half at the Petersen Events Center. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

In what will likely be the most surprising matchup of 2021’s Championship Week, the No. 8 seeded Elon Phoenix will take on the No. 6 seed Drexel Dragons with a spot in the NCAA Tournament on the line tonight in the Colonial Athletic Association Championship Game. The final will take place at the Atlantic Union Bank Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Elon (10-8, 4-7 CAA) is in the middle of one of the great turnarounds you’ll ever see in college basketball. The Phoenix had lost eight in a row from December 19th through February 13th. They looked dead and buried and like their season was over. But since beating Charleston on Valentine’s Day they’ve won seven straight, and are one win away from winning eight from the NCAA Tournament in what is an incredible story.

6’2 sophomore Hunter McIntosh has been the team’s most consistent player all season, averaging 15.5 points and 3.3 rebounds this season. He’s scored less during the win streak, but put up 24 in their 72-71 win over No. 1 seed James Madison in the quarterfinal of this tournament.

Drexel (11-7, 4-5 CAA) is on a bit of a heater themselves, knocking off James Madison in the regular season finale before comfortably beating both Charleston and Northeastern to reach the final. The Dragons offense is pretty efficient at 108.8 points per 100 possessions, but they also play pretty slow at just 66.3 possessions per game. Junior point guard Camren Wynter makes them go with 17.3 points and 5.4 assists per game, but they have four scorers that average double digits per game.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

You can watch No. 8 seed Elon vs. No. 6 seed Drexel on Tuesday, March 9 at 7:00 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network. or you can watch via the CBS Sports app or CBS All-Access with a cable or streaming service login. If you don’t have a cable login, you can get a free trial from YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, AT&T TV Now, FuboTV, or Sling TV to stream it.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Point spread: Drexel -3.5
Point Total: 130
Moneyline: Elon +143, Drexel -175

Notes

  • The Phoenix don’t get the line a lot, but do make 75.2% of their free throws as a team.
  • During their seven-game win streak, Elon has not only won but covered the spread in every game.
  • Drexel’s eFG of 54.3% and three-point shooting of 36.2% makes them the most efficient offense in the CAA.

The Best Bet

It’s just too good a story to root against. In a season where everything has gone wrong for so many teams, to pull it out of the fire like Elon has is just incredible. They’re 40 minutes from the NCAA Tournament when they would have been more than 100-1 to get there less than a month ago. This is bad gambling technique, but we’re going with our heart here.

The Pick: Elon +3.5

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