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DePaul vs Villanova Prediction 2/5/25 College Basketball Picks Today

Villanova (12-10) vs. DePaul (11-12)
February 5, 2025 9:00 pm EDT
The Line: DePaul +4.5; Over/Under: 142.5
(Get latest betting odds)

The Villanova Wildcats and the DePaul Blue Demons meet Wednesday in college basketball action from Wintrust Arena. Here’s a DePaul vs Villanova prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best DePaul vs Villanova pick.

Villanova Wildcats Betting Preview

The Wildcats had a spotty run in November but they were looking good by early January. Since then, however, Villanova has faltered. During a 3-4 opening run the Wildcats took losses to Columbia, Saint Joseph’s, Virginia, and Maryland. Wins over Rider, Cincinnati, Temple, Fairleigh Dickinson, and Seton Hall followed, then a loss to Creighton. After three more wins over Butler, DePaul, and UConn, the Wildcats began a 1-5 skid. The lone win in that time was over Providence. Otherwise, it’s been losses to St. John’s, Xavier, Georgetown, Marquette, and Creighton along the way to a spotty 12-10 overall record through the first 22 games this year.



In the Creighton game over the weekend, the Wildcats were looking at a 29-29 tie on the scoreboard following the first half. Villanova was outscored 33-31 the rest of the way during a tough home loss 62-60 in the end. Leading team scorer Wooga Poplar had 24 points with four rebounds and five steals. Eric Dixon added 17 points with five rebounds and two assists, while Jordan Longino chipped in eight points with two rebounds in 39 minutes of action in the loss.

DePaul Blue Demons Betting Preview

Over on the DePaul side, they started out on a great run over their first seven games. Since then, however, the wins have been few and far between. The Demons beat Prairie View, Mercer, Duquesne, Eastern Illinois, Northern Illinois, and Valparaiso in those opening matchups, then hit a 2-4 slide versus Texas Tech, Providence, St. John’s, and Northwestern with wins over Wichita State, and Loyola MD. After losses to UConn, Villanova, Seton Hall, Xavier, and Marquette, the Demons got another win over Georgetown. Since then it’s been a 1-3 run with losses to Creighton, Butler, and UConn ahead of a win over Seton Hall. The result so far has been an 11-12 overall record through 23 games for the Blue Demons.

Matched up against Seton Hall in their Sunday game, the Demons came out of the first half holding a 38-29 advantage. DePaul kept it rolling from there on a 36-28 stretch and took the victory 74-57 in the end. NJ Benson doubled up on 17 points with 11 rebounds and three assists alongside a pair of blocks, while CJ Gunn chipped in 16 points with seven rebounds. Isaiah Rivera came off the bench for 14 points and two rebounds, and Jacob Meyer added 11 points with one assist and one steal in 19 minutes off the bench himself.

Why the DePaul Blue Demons will win

  • DePaul has won each of its last six night games at Wintrust Arena following a home win.
  • Villanova has lost five of its last six games.
  • DePaul has won the first half in seven of its last eight night games at Wintrust Arena.

Why the Villanova Wildcats will win

  • DePaul has lost each of its last 14 night games against the Big East Conference at Wintrust Arena.
  • Villanova has won each of its last five games against DePaul.
  • Villanova has won the first half in each of its last eight night games against DePaul.

DePaul vs Villanova Prediction

I’ll stick with Villanova I suppose. Both teams have been struggling lately, however, so I’m probably staying away from this one. That said, the Wildcats didn’t play great versus Creighton in their last outing, shooting 39.7 percent from the field and just 17.6 percent (3-of-17) from 3-point range alongside a 40-28 rebounding deficit. The lone saving grace was the 25 points off 18 Bluejays turnovers, but it wasn’t enough to get the victory. During this 1-5 skid, the Wildcats have been below 69 points in four of the five losses, so it’d be nice to see them eclipse the 70-point mark here.

Villanova did just that the last time these teams saw each other back on January 4. The Wildcats posted a 100-56 blowout win at home there, shooting a stellar 59.7 percent from the field and 59.3 percent (16-of-27) from outside. The only spotty shooting work came at the line (10-of-18 for 55.6 percent), but otherwise, it was a pretty perfect performance all things considered. The Wildcats likely won’t dominate like that in the road rematch but I think they’ve still got the advantage in most facets.

Andrew's Free Pick: Villanova Wildcats -4.5

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Andrew

Andrew has been writing about college, professional and fantasy sports betting since 2013. Andrew's goal is to break down the complicated numbers and trends into a language that's easily accessible to novice sports bettors and seasoned professionals alike.

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