Xavier vs Villanova 1/12/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Villanova Wildcats (11-4) vs. Xavier Musketeers (12-2)
January 12, 2022 6:30 pm EDT
The Line: Xavier Musketeers +1 ; Over/Under: 139.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Villanova Wildcats and the Xavier Musketeers meet Wednesday in college basketball action from Cintas Center. Villanova is sitting at 11-4 so far. The Wildcats are coming off a win over DePaul. As for Xavier, they’re currently 12-2 and fresh off a win over Butler. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Villanova posted a 7-4 run over their first 11 games this year. The Wildcats lost to UCLA, Purdue, Baylor and Creighton in that time. Since then it’s been wins over Xavier, Seton Hall, Creighton and DePaul.
In the DePaul matchup on Saturday, the Wildcats were down 37-32 at the break. Villanova went on a 47-27 run from there in a 79-64 comeback win. Collin Gillespie put up 28 points to lead the team, and Justin Moore added 21 points.
Over on the Xavier side, they went on an 11-1 run to kick off the year. The Musketeers’ only blemish was a loss to Iowa State on November 24. In the last pair of games it’s been a loss to Villanova and a win over Butler.
In the Butler game, the Musketeers carried a 42-31 lead into halftime and hung on for the eventual 87-72 win. Adam Kunkel led the way on 25 points, and Paul Scruggs added 16 points with seven rebounds and six assists.
The Musketeers are 7-2 ATS in their last nine overall and 7-1 ATS in their last eight at home. The over is 3-1-1 in Xavier’s last five overall.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats are 4-1 ATS in their last five after an ATS win and 4-0 ATS in their last four overall. Villanova is 5-2 ATS in the last seven Wednesday games.
PICK: I’m going to stay with Villanova here. The last time these teams met up back on December 21, the Wildcats notched a 71-58 victory. Villanova shot 49.1 percent from the floor in that one but were out-rebounded 32-31 overall. Still, the Wildcats owned the second half and they’ve hit 73 or more points in each of the three games since.
As for the Musketeers, I think they’ll be competitive in this one as well. Xavier has hit 77 more more points in seven of their last eight games, so we’ll probably see a better points total here. Should be another great game.
