Xavier at Marquette odds, picks and predictions
The Xavier Musketeers (13-13, 7-8 Big East) and Marquette Golden Eagles (20-6, 11-4) meet in Milwaukee Sunday. Tip-off at the Fiserv Forum will be at 5 p.m. ET (FS1). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook's lines around the Xavier vs. Marquette odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
Xavier was a 5-point favorite in a Wednesday home game against Providence, but the Musketeers lost 79-75 and they head into this contest with a 3-game losing streak in tow.
The Eagles, ranked No. 8 in the Paste BN Sports Coaches Poll, netted a season-high 105 points in their last game. They covered a 27 1/2-point spread in a 105-71 triumph over DePaul Wednesday. Since losing to Butler Jan. 10, Marquette is 9-1 straight up and 8-2 against the spread (ATS).
Stream select live college basketball games and full replays: Get ESPN+
Xavier at Marquette odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access Paste BN Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated 8:22 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Xavier +420 (bet $100 to win $420) | Marquette -580 (bet $580 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Xavier +10.5 (-110) | Marquette -10.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 157.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)
Xavier at Marquette picks and predictions
Prediction
Marquette 82, Xavier 69
Moneyline
PASS. Better value can be found playing Marquette against the number.
Against the spread
MU is 4-2 ATS across the last 6 series meetings, and the Eagles are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 series games at home. The Eagles are 9-4 ATS on home hardwood; they are 10-5 ATS in league games and are 10-2 ATS in games lined with totals in the 150s.
Xavier has played a very tough slate and has been somewhat unlucky to have lost 13 games so far, but the Musketeers' road efforts against the better squads in the Big East are filled with too many non-competitive games. On offense, Xavier gets forced into too many substandard mid-range looks, and the Musketeers are not a good enough shooting team to pull off sustained runs against a Marquette-type defense.
MU figures to have a sizable edge in the turnover exchange. Strong-rebounding XU needs a big game on the offensive glass to stay within 10. And maybe that is not enough.
A day-1 line move has cut into leverage here. Consider a partial-unit play on MARQUETTE -10.5 (-110).
Play our free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now!
Over/Under
The Under is 3-1 in Xavier's last 4 games and 2-1 in Marquette's last 3. And the Under is 5-0-1 across the last half-dozen XU-MU contests.
The last 10 Xavier road games lined with a total in the 150s have cashed on the Under. The Eagles have scored 80-plus points 11 times this season; the Under has gone 9-2 in the games that have followed.
These are 2 fast-tempo teams, but here are the key points of consideration for how the points get filed in this one: Don't expect many free-throw attempts, and peg Xavier's perimeter defense -- solid overall and trending the right way of late -- as keeping MU from having a monster game from distance (from where the Eagles do like to launch many a shot).
BACK THE UNDER 156.5 (-105).
For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and like us on Facebook.
College sports coverage from Paste BN Sports Media Group:
Alabama / Arkansas / Auburn / Clemson / Colorado / Florida / Georgia / Iowa / LSU / Michigan / Michigan State / Nebraska / North Carolina / Notre Dame / Ohio State / Oklahoma / Oregon / Penn State / Rutgers / Tennessee / Texas / Texas A&M / USC / Wisconsin /
College Sports Wire: Men's hoops / Women's hoops / High School