The Marquette Golden Eagles and the Xavier Musketeers meet Saturday in college basketball action from Cintas Center. Here’s a Xavier vs Marquette prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Xavier vs Marquette pick.
Marquette Golden Eagles Betting Preview
Marquette took out Stony Brook, George Mason, Central Michigan, Maryland, Purdue, Georgia, Stonehill and Western Carolina during an 8-0 start. It’s been a 2-2 run since then with losses to Iowa State and Dayton mixed with wins over Wisconsin and Butler.
In the Butler game on Wednesday, the Eagles were down 35-32 going into the second half. Marquette came back with a flurry on a 48-35 run and took the win 80-70. Kam Jones was the leading team scorer on 23 points and seven boards.
Xavier Musketeers Betting Preview
Over on the Xavier side, they beat Texas Southern, IUPUI, Jackson State, Wake Forest, Siena and South Carolina in their first six. It’s been a 2-4 run since then with losses to Michigan, TCU, Cincinnati and UConn, however.
On Wednesday versus UConn, the Musketeers were up by one point at the break and eventually needed overtime to decide a 94-89 defeat. Ryan Conwell topped the team in the losing effort with 23 points and three rebounds.
Why the Xavier Musketeers will win
- Xavier has won each of its last seven games at Cintas Center.
- Marquette has lost three of its last four games at Cintas Center.
- Xavier has won the first half in each of its last six games at Cintas Center.
Why the Marquette Golden Eagles will win
- Xavier has lost each of its last 13 games against AP-ranked opponents.
- Marquette has won each of its last 11 day games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
- Xavier has lost the first half in each of its last 12 games against Top 10 AP-ranked opponents.
Xavier vs Marquette Prediction
I’ll lean toward Marquette here, but you could make a good case either way. The Eagles started slowly versus Butler in their last outing but eventually persevered on a 38-27 rebounding edge and just two turnovers. The shooting wasn’t that great, though—Marquette put up just 6-of-30 (20 percent) from outside. That said, the Eagles’ offense hasn’t been an issue this year; they’ve scored 70 or more points in 11 of 12 games so far.
As for Xavier, they couldn’t handle a resurgent UConn team in overtime during their last outing. The Musketeers shot very well (50 percent) but got outmuscled on the boards 35-27. Rebounding is going to be key for Marquette here—especially if they’re going through shooting lulls. The Eagles should have a solid cover shot if they control the boards.