Xavier has had the X-factor against top opposition this season. The Musketeers have already claimed two wins over ranked Big East teams in their first four conference games on their home floor, but have had their problems on the road. They’ll need to put those road woes behind as they’ll be visiting the top dogs in the conference – the No. 5 Villanova Wildcats – on Wednesday.
Read on for more on this big-time showdown in the Big East. While you’re at it, check out our previews of North Carolina vs. NC State and No. 11 Iowa State vs. No. 22 Baylor for more of this week’s great college hoops action.
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Xavier Musketeers vs. Villanova Wildcats Betting Preview
Xavier (11-5, 2-2) has kicked its conference schedule off to quite a peculiar start. The Musketeers own not one but two big double-digit upset wins over ranked opponents – No. 25 Georgetown and No. 19 Seton Hall – on their own building.
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]But they’ve dropped their other two conference games – both on the road. They went down, 71-68, to DePaul (currently 9-8 overall) and most recently lost 88-76 at Butler last Saturday.
Much like its opponent in this one, Xavier relies on a very balanced, unselfish attack. The Musketeers’ top six scorers this season are averaging between 13 and nine points per game, and they’re averaging 79.0 points per game this season, 19th in the country. The ever-reliable kenpom.com ranks Xavier eighth in adjusted offensive efficiency, just one spot lower than Nova.
But for them to come away victorious, they’ll need to get some stops on the Wildcats’ equally efficient offense. That’ll be hard to do, given that the Musketeers are giving up 67.6 points per game (215th in the country). However, they’ve been oddly more successful defensively against the top teams. They held Georgetown to 53 points and Seton Hall to 58 points.
The total has gone under in four of Xavier’s last five games.
Betting on the Villanova Wildcats
No. 5 Villanova (15-1, 3-1) has bounced back well from its first loss of the season – a close 66-61 overtime defeat at Seton Hall – with a pair of blowout wins over No. 24 St. Joseph’s (90-72) and DePaul (81-64).
The Wildcats’ excellent offense was purring in those two games. They shot 53 percent or better from the field, including 43 percent or better from the three-point line (on over 20 attempts).
Senior guard Darrun Hilliard II has been on a particular tear, with back-to-back 21 point games. But the beauty of Nova is its impressive depth, which has seven players averaging eight or more points. Any one of those players can go off at any given night without hurting the team too significantly.
When everything is clicking (i.e. the ball is moving and the shots are falling), Villanova and its No. 7-ranked offense are very hard to stop. But its defense is also a very impressive 11th in kenpom’s defensive efficiency, which makes it that much more likely that they are the ones to get the much-needed stops against Xavier’s own free-scoring offense.
Villanova is just 2-4 against the spread in its last six games.
Writer’s Prediction
Xavier puts up another tough fight against a ranked opponent and covers (+10.5) at Villanova. Create a betting account now and find some plucky college hoops underdogs to cash in on in a big week in the NCAA.
