Xavier vs. Villanova - 2/22/20 College Basketball Pick, Odds, and Prediction
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Villanova Wildcats (20-6) at Xavier Musketeers (17-9)
College Basketball: Saturday, February 22, 2020 at 2:30 pm (Cintas Center)
The Line: Xavier Musketeers +1 -- Over/Under: 136 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Villanova Wildcats (20-6, 9-4 CONF) and the Xavier Musketeers (17-9, 6-7 CONF) will meet on Saturday, February 22nd for a Big East conference matchup at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, OH. The game will be played at 2:30 PM eastern time.
Villanova is coming off a 91-71 road win over DePaul in their last game. #12 Villanova has now won three games in a row, ending their slide a little while ago. Xavier is coming off a much-needed road win over St. Johns in their last game. Xavier is on the bubble as of now when it comes to the NCAA Tournament. They need a statement win, like this game against Villanova, to feel confident at earning a berth.
Villanova scores 74.3 points per game on 44.3% FG shooting this season. The Wildcats leading scorer is G Collin Gillespie, who scores 16.2 PPG. The Wildcats leading rebounder is F Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who averages 9.3 RPG. Villanova allows 66.9 points per game to the opposition, therefore they have a +7.4 scoring differential so far this season. Villanova also earns 36.0 rebounds, 14.9 assists, 2.8 blocks, and 5.8 steals per game as a team.
Xavier scores 71.2 points per game on 43.4% FG shooting this season. The Musketeers leading scorer is F Naji Marshall, who scores 16.1 PPG. The Musketeers leading rebounder is F Tyrique Jones, who averages 11.3 RPG. Xavier gives up 67.1 points per game to the opposition, thus they have +4.1 point differential so far this season. Xavier also earns 40.0 rebounds, 14.5 assists, 3.7 blocks, and 5.7 steals per game as a team.
Villanova is 12-12-2 ATS this season and 5-4-1 ATS in their last ten games. Villanova is also 5-3-1 ATS on the road so far this season. Xavier is 10-14-2 ATS this season and 6-4 ATS in their last ten games. Xavier is also 4-8-2 ATS at home so far this season.
When Villanova gets hot, they are very tough to stop. Xavier needs this game so much more than Nova does, however, that will not stop Villanova from pushing hard for a big road win against a big rival. I will take Villanova and lay the one point.
Ronald’s Pick Villanova -1
AUTHOR: Ronald Romanelli
