NCAA Basketball Betting – No. 3 Syracuse, No. 22 Georgetown Set For Big East Battle

NCAA basketball betting enthusiasts will get to see a thriller when the 22nd-ranked Georgetown Hoyas will be looking to build on their emphatic Big East Tournament opening game victory and take down top-seeded and third-ranked Syracuse when they renew the tourney’s most-played series at Madison Square Garden today at 12 PM ET.

Thursday, March 11, 12:00 PM ET
TV: ESPN

NCAAB Betting Odds: Syracuse -6

Georgetown (21-9 SU, 14-12 ATS, 11-8 Conf.)
Syracuse (28-3 SU, 19-8 ATS, 15-3 Conf.)

Here is a look at the college basketball betting trends surrounding today’s matchup.

• Hoyas are 1-7 ATS in the last 8 meetings.
• Over is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.

Georgetown 411

• Hoyas are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games.
• Hoyas are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 neutral site games as an underdog.
• Hoyas are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 Thursday games.

Georgetown put the pedal to the metal in its 69-49 rout over South Florida in the second round of the Big East Conference tournament on Wednesday.

The Hoyas cashed in as 7-point favorites as Greg Monroe and Jason Clark each scored a team-high 16 points. Georgetown has now covered the college basketball point spread in two straight games while going 3-2 ATS in their last five games overall.

Syracuse 411

• Orange are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games following a S.U. loss.
• Orange are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 neutral site games as a favorite.
• Orange are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 neutral site games.

Syracuse dropped its second game of the year on Saturday afternoon, getting upset by Louisville 78-68 in the final game at Freedom Hall. The Orange failed to cover the NCAA basketball betting line as a 1-point road favorite to snap a four-game ATS winning streak.

The Scoop: Syracuse has five players who average in double figures led by senior forward Wesley Johnson, who averages 15.7. Johnson, a former Iowa State player for two years who felt unused by the school, is the first player in Orange history to win conference player of the year honors after transferring from another school.

"It wouldn't be possible without my teammates," Johnson said. "We have a team full of MVPs not just me. So a piece of this trophy goes out to all of them."

Syracuse swept both meetings against the Hoyas this season while shutting down Hoyas star Greg Monroe, who scored just 28 points and 13 rebounds over the two games while committing 11 turnovers in the two losses.

Syracuse also won three games en route to the final in last year's tournament and is the far better offensive team in this contest as they average 81.4 points per game compared to the Hoyas’ average of 72.9 points per contest.

The Orange and Hoyas have split 12 tournament meetings all-time.

"We've played them twice already," Thompson said. "It's Georgetown-Syracuse. We know what they're going to do. They know what we're going to do."

Analysis: I’ve always like Georgetown’s mostly offensively-challenged basketball program, but I’ll be the first to say that the Hoyas look like they could be in a spot of trouble today despite their emphatic win the last time out.