Notre Dame vs Seton Hall Betting Pick
by Nick Meyer
The Big East has been a wild conference all year, and that's are about to get even more insane as its conference tournament heads into the second round at the world's most famous basketball arena.
Madison Square Garden will be the site of a key matchup between Notre Dame and Seton Hall tonight at 7 p.m. as both teams will likely be fighting for their NCAA Tournament lives.
While Notre Dame is listed in the "should be in" category among many NCAA Tournament bubble watch articles, the Irish could be in trouble if they lose decisively to the Pirates of Seton Hall tonight.
Seton Hall on the other hand probably will need to win this game to make the field of 65 if not another game after this one.
With both teams fighting for their tournament lives, this is one game that the NCAA basketball betting community can trust will play out the way it should with both teams giving it their all.
Seton Hall Pirates (19-11 SU, 3-9-1 ATS) vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish ( 21-10 SU, 14-10-1 ATS)
7 p.m. ET on ESPN
: Notre Dame favored at -2.
The Irish played well without star forward Luke Harangody winning four straight to close the regular season, and now he is back and likely to come off the bench in this one.
Harangody's post scoring and reliable mid-range shot was missed but ND seemed to fare a little better on defense without him. The college basketball betting spread in this one seems to reflect Harangody's return as the Irish are a slight favorite.
The Irish have shot the three-ball extremely well and will need to continue to do so tonight to cover the spread against the Pirates. Madison Square Garden is a shooter's gym according to many people and some of the shooting displays we've seen in the past because of its dark concourses enabling shooters to focus a little better than at a typical big-time pro arena with brighter lights.
Seton Hall has also played well down the stretch, winning three straight coming into this one.
Guard Jeremy Hazell could be the difference maker for the Pirates at 21 points a game along with forward Herb Pope's 11+ rebounds per game.
Seton Hall beat the Irish by three at home earlier in the year, but on a neutral court, things should shift in ND's favor, especially with Harangody providing big offense off the bench.
This one should be a back and forth contest but expect the Irish to come out on top based on their hot recent shooting streak.
