Villanova vs Marquette NCAAB Game Prediction

Because Monday is the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in the United States, there’s plenty of matinee college basketball around the country. The lone ranked team in action is No. 11 Marquette and the Golden Eagles – who will fall from No. 11 in the new polls Monday — are solid home favorites on the NCAAB odds in Big East action against Villanova. 2024 NCAA Basketball Betting & Expert Analysis Villanova vs. #11 Marquette | MyBookie Sportsbook Week 11 NCAAB

Where: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee
TV: FOX
Stream: FOX Sports Live
Radio: Tunein.com
Opening NCAAB Lines: Marquette -5 (total 142.5)

Why Bet on Villanova Wildcats?

The Wildcats (11-5) improved to 4-1 in Big East play by trashing DePaul 94-69 on Friday. Villanova opened the second half on an 8-3 run, solidifying a big lead that DePaul wouldn’t be able to overcome. Down by as much as 17, DePaul hit 5-of-7 field goals pulling the game back to 14, 67-53.

He contributed two points, three assists with zero turnovers in 23:22 of game action.

“It’s just getting my wind back and getting into game shape,” Moore said. “I was just happy to be back there out on the court with my guys. I felt all right. There were times I had to get a sub.”

The sophomore’s fifth triple of the period gave VU a 42-27 lead before the Blue Demons notched the final five points of the half to make it a 42-32 Nova edge at the break. By night’s end, he finished with 17 points, including a second half dunk, on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor. He is 15-of-30 (.500) from deep since a Dec. 9 win over UCLA. On the season, Hausen is 31-of-78 from distance (.397).

“We know what kind of shooter he is. If he gets an open look – really, if he gets a look – it has a really good chance of going in,” Coach Kyle Neptune said. I think defensively Brendan has taken a huge jump. He’s in there, he’s guarding guys, chesting them to keep them out of the paint, knows the scout. That’s where he’s made a huge jump. He’s out there more now because he’s taken a huge jump defensively.”

The 94 points were the most VU has scored in a contest this season and the most points scored in a home Big East game since a 96-64 win over Marquette on Feb. 10, 2021. Villanova connected on 8-of-20 of its attempts from beyond the arc (.400). It is 10-1 this season when converting 30 percent or more of its shots from long range. The 70-point threshold has been a key indicator for Villanova as well as it is 10-1 when holding foes below 70.

Bet Villanova to Win
MyBookie Betting Lines for NCAAB

Why Bet on Marquette Golden Eagles?

Marquette (11-5) likely will drop from No. 11 in the new polls as it enters on a two-game skid. Not only were the Golden Eagles upset at home 69-62 by Butler on Wednesday in their last game but they also lost guard Sean Jones to a season-ending torn ACL. Jones had come off the bench in each of Marquette’s 16 games and was averaging 5.8 points and two assists in 16.3 minutes. Despite his low scoring numbers, Jones showed a penchant for hitting clutch baskets. He hit a 3-pointer late in MU’s victory at Illinois, and knocked down the winning 3-pointer against UCLA in the first round of the Maui Invitational. Jones also had been one of the Golden Eagles’ best defenders, making 15 steals.

Fellow reserve guard Chase Ross (shoulder) was out vs. Butler and be re-evaluated later this month. The loss to the Bulldogs ended a 20-game conference home winning streak for Marquette that tied a Big East record.

Guard Kam Jones scored 11 points in the opening seven minutes of Wednesday’s game against Butler, reaching 1,000 career points in the process.

The Marquette players (Tyler Kolek, Stevie Mitchell and Ross) are ranked among the Big East leaders in steals.

The All-American Kolek is one of the country’s top point guards and on pace to become the fifth player (Tony Miller, Travis Diener, Dominic James and Aaron Hutchins) in school history with 1,000 career points (901) and 500 assists (560).

Forward Oso Ighodaro entered the Dec. 9 game vs. Notre Dame shooting just 50.0 percent from the charity stripe in 2023-24 and 58.0 percent for his career. Over the past seven games, however, Ighodaro has knocked down 36-of-47 (76.6 percent) from the line. That has helped Ighodaro score 20-or-more points in three of the last seven contests and in those games he chipped in 15.1 points and 7.7 rebounds per outing.

Head coach Shaka Smart and his staff place an emphasis on the number of deflections the team collects on a per game basis, with the target goal each outing a total of 32. MU has averaged 32.1 deflections per game (514 total) and met or surpassed its goal of 32 in 6-of-11 victories.

Bet Marquette to Win
MyBookie Betting Lines for NCAAB