Xavier vs Butler 3/9/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Butler Bulldogs (13-18) vs. Xavier Musketeers (18-12)
March 9, 2022 4:30 pm EDT
The Line: Xavier Musketeers -5.5 / Butler Bulldogs +5.5; Over/Under: -132.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Butler Bulldogs and the Xavier Musketeers meet in college basketball action from Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night.
The Butler Bulldogs come into the conference tournament as the #9 seed, finishing the year at 13-16 overall and 6-14 in conference play. Chuck Harris leads the Bulldogs in scoring with 10.7 PPG while Bo Hodges has 10.4 PPG with 6.5 RPG in 15 games this season and Bryce Golden has 8.9 PPG with 3.5 RPG. Jayden Taylor has 8.5 PPG while Aaron Thompson has a team-high 3.9 APG as well this season. As a team, Butler is averaging 63.1 PPG on 41.8% shooting from the field, 31% from three and 69.5% from the foul line while allowing 66.5 PPG on 43.4% shooting from the field and 31.6% from three this season.
The Xavier Musketeers come into the conference tournament as the #8 seed, finishing the year at 18-12 overall including an 8-11 mark in conference play this season. Jack Nunge leads the Musketeers in scoring with 13.1 PPG along with 7.5 RPG while Paul Scruggs has 11.9 PPG with 4.2 RPG and a team-high 4 APG to lead the Musketeers in the assist department. Colby Jones has 11 PPG with a team-high 7.6 RPG to lead the Musketeers on the glass and Nate Johnson has 10.4 PPG to make up the group of double-digit scorers for Xavier this season. Zach Freemantle also has 9.8 PPG and 5.1 RPG as well this season. As a team, Xavier is averaging 73.7 PPG on 44.5% shooting from the field, 32.8% from three and 71.3% from the foul line while allowing 68.6 PPG on 42.3% shooting from the field and 33% from three this season.
Butler is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games following a loss and 0-4 ATS in their last 4 neutral site games as an underdog while the over is 5-1 in their last 6 games following an ATS loss. Xavier is 0-4 ATS in their last 4 neutral site games as a favorite and 0-8 ATS in their last 8 games following a win while the over is 4-0 in their last 4 games as a favorite.
I get the case to be made for either side here, but I’m leaning towards Butler and the points here. Xavier has been the better team for much of the season, but the reality here is that the Musketeers didn’t really live up to expectations and their current standing and matchup in the conference tournament has to be disappointing. Butler hasn’t had many expectations to live up to, but they’ve battled hard and I think this is a 2-3 point game whichever way you slice it, so give me Butler and the points here.
