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NCAA Basketball Betting – Marquette, Villanova, Look to Advance in Big East Tourney

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The 10th-ranked Villanova Wildcats will look to snap out of its recent slump and beat the improved Marquette Golden Eagles for the third time this season when the two Big East rivals take to the court at Madison Square Garden today at 2:30 PM ET.

Thursday, March 11, 2:30 PM ET
TV: ESPN

College Basketball Betting Odds: Villanova -5

Marquette (21-10 SU, 15-9-1 ATS, 12-7 Conf.)
Villanova (24-6 SU, 18-11 ATS, 13-5 Conf.)

Here is a look at the key head-to-head trends surrounding this contest, followed by my in-depth analysis and expert NCAA basketball picks.

Golden Eagles are 7-2 ATS in the last 9 meetings.
Favorite is 5-2 ATS in the last 7 meetings.

Marquette 411

  • Golden Eagles are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog.
  • Golden Eagles are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 neutral site games as an underdog.
  • Golden Eagles are 10-3-1 ATS in their last 14 games vs. a team with a winning S.U. record.
  • Golden Eagles are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games as an underdog of 6.5 points or less


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Marquette escaped their second round Big East Conference tournament matchup against St. John's with a narrow 57-55 victory on Wednesday as senior forward Lazar Hayward scored a game-high 20 points. The Golden Eagles failed to cover the NCAA basketball point spread as a 4-point favorite to fall to 0-2 ATS over the last two games and 2-2 ATS over their last four games overall.

Villanova 411

  • Wildcats are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 neutral site games.
  • Wildcats are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following an SU loss.
  • Wildcats are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games as a favorite of 0.5-6.5.
  • Wildcats are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games overall.

Villanova has alternated wins and losses over its last five games and dropped a heart-breaking 68-66 overtime loss to West Virginia at home on Saturday. Scottie Reynolds scored a team-high 17 points, but shot just 5-for-16 from the field as the Wildcats failed to cash in as 3-point home favorites.

The Wildcats are just 2-4 SU over their last six games and just 3-7 ATS over their last 10 games overall.

The Scoop: While the Villanova Wildcats have been mired in an untimely slump recently, the Marquette Golden Eagles have won 10 of its last 12 games against conference rivals after getting off to a dismal 2-5 start.

"Everything has changed," coach Buzz Williams said. "The whole deal is this, our margin of error has never changed.

The Wildcats opened the season 20-1 overall and 9-0 in the Big East, but went 4-5 down the stretch. The good news (if you can call it that) is the fact that all six of Nova’s losses this season have come against teams that have been ranked at some point.

"We are getting better even though it doesn't show sometimes in wins and losses," Wright said. "We're getting better defensively, we're getting a little bit better rebounding-wise. And we just played better teams at the end of the schedule."

Eleven of Marquette’s 18 regular-season conference games were decided by three points or less this season while four of the team’s final five contests went to overtime.

Analysis: I’ll keep this pick short and sweet by simply saying that five points looks to be about four points to high for the Villanova Wildcats to cover today.

I like the Wildcats to win and advance to the next round, but I just can’t see them beating a rejuvenated Marquette ballclub by seven points after recording consecutive two-point wins over the Golden Eagles during the regular season and failing to cover the NCAA basketball spread as ridiculously high 9-point home favorites in their last meeting.

I know the Wildcats have gone a perfect 4-0 ATS in their last four neutral site games but Villanova is also just 2-5 ATS in their last seven games overall while Marquette has gone a bankroll-boosting 5-0 ATS in their last five games as an underdog and 10-3-1 ATS in their last 14 games against a team with a winning SU record.

Cementing my pick in this contest is the fact that the Golden Eagles have made a habit of consistently cashing in against Villanova with their 7-2 ATS record in the last nine meetings against their Big East conference rivals.

NCAAB Free Picks: Marquette +5 Points