Creighton vs NC State Pick – Basketball Predictions & Odds 3/17/23
NC State Wolfpack (23-10) vs. Creighton Bluejays (21-12)
March 17, 2023 4:00 pm EDT
The Line: Creighton Bluejays -4.5 / NC State Wolfpack +4.5 ; Over/Under:
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The NC State Wolfpack and the Creighton Bluejays meet Friday in NCAA Tournament First Round action from Pepsi Center. NC State enters this one at 23-10 overall. The Wolfpack lost to Clemson last Thursday in ACC Tournament activity. As for Creighton, they’re sitting at 21-12 on the season and lost to Xavier in their last outing. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
NC State Wolfpack
NC State got through the regular season with a 22-9 recored overall. The Wolfpack finished off the campaign with consecutive losses to Clemson and Duke. In the first game of the ACC Tournament, NC State was able to beat Virginia Tech 97-77.
Matched up against Clemson last Thursday, the Wolfpack took a 39-36 deficit into the second half. NC State was drilled 41-18 from there and lost 80-54. Leading the team in scoring was DJ Burns on 12 points, and Terquavion Smith added 11 points.
Creighton Bluejays
Over on the Creighton side, their regular season ended in a 20-11 overall run. The Bluejays went 2-2 in their final four outings with wins over Georgetown and DePaul. Creighton would then take out Villanova 87-74 in their first Big East Tournament game.
Matched up against Xavier last Friday in the conference tourney, Creighton faced a 40-26 deficit in the first half. The Bluejays didn’t end up getting any closer on a 42-34 deficit from there and lost 82-60. Ryan Kalkbrenner was tops on the team with 18 points and three rebounds.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll stick with Creighton in this one, but I’m probably not going near it. You could make a good case either way. The Bluejays had a rough time against a very good Xavier team in their last outing, shooting a tepid 37.5 percent from the field with a 45-28 rebounding deficit in the loss. Creighton had been on a good scoring run prior to that however, with 84 or more points in three straight games. As for NC State, they had a tough draw against Clemson in their last game as well. The Wolfpack are just 1-3 in their last four outings, but they’ve played some stout opponents during that time. This one should be pretty evenly-matched, and I like Creighton just a little better.
