The Xavier Musketeers and the Butler Bulldogs meet in college basketball action from the Hinkle Fieldhouse on Friday night. Let’s dive into the odds, injuries, matchup history and make a prediction for this game.
Odds
Xavier is listed as a 6.5-point road favorite with a ML price of -315. The total for this game is set at 145.5 points.
Injuries
For Xavier, Zach Freemantle is out until early March with a foot injury while Butler has Chuck Harris listed as questionable for this game with a concussion.
Matchup History
Butler’s 89-82 OT win back on March 9th, 2022, snapped Xavier’s mini two-game win streak in this head-to-head matchup.
Trends
Xavier is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games against a team with a losing record and 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games following a win while the over is 6-0-1 in their last 7 games after allowing 90 points or more in their previous game. Butler is 0-3-1 ATS in their last 4 games following a win and 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600 while the under is 4-0 in their last 4 games overall.
Pick
I’m sticking with Xavier here. I know it can be tough to pass on a home underdog and Butler’s won 3 of their last 5 games at home, but I just don’t trust Butler offensively enough to be able to keep this one within reason. The Musketeers have a lineup that’s fully capable of burying an opponent with one or two runs in a game and Butler’s fully capable of going on an extended scoring drought and we’ve seen it on more than one occasion this season. I’ll stick with Xavier on the road here.