Xavier vs Cincinnati Prediction College Basketball Picks 12/14/24

The Xavier Musketeers are visiting the Cincinnati Bearcats on Saturday, December 14th at the Fifth Third Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Xavier Musketeers vs Cincinnati Bearcats Prediction.

Cincinnati Bearcats Preview

The Cincinnati Bearcats have a 7-1 record this season and are coming off an 84-67 win over Howard. The Bearcats are 4-4 against the spread, and 2-6 in over/under while having a 5-0 road record. 

Offensively, Cincinnati is averaging 82 points per game, which ranks 60th in the nation. Defensively, they allow 58.9 points per game, which is the 9th-best nationally. The Bearcats shoot 51.7% from the field, which is the 4th-best in the nation, and 39.3% from beyond the arc (24th). The Bearcats shoot just 59.4% from the free-throw line, which is the fourth-worst nationally, and are grabbing 38.6 rebounds per game (86th).

Simas Lukosius leads Cincinnati in scoring with an average of 16.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists, while Jizzle James adds 13.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, and a team-high 5.1 assists.

Xavier Musketeers Preview

The Xavier Musketeers have an 8-2 record this season and are coming off a 119-58 win over Morgan State. The Musketeers are 4-6 against the spread, and 2-7-1 in over/under, while having a 0-1 road record this season.

Offensively, Xavier is averaging 81.1 points per game, which ranks 77th in the nation. Defensively, they allow 66.7 points per game (79th). The Musketeers shoot 47.6% from the field (79th) and 40.1% from beyond the arc (18th). The Musketeers shoot 77% from the free throw line (40th) and are grabbing 37.2 rebounds per game (151st).

Zach Freemantle leads Xavier in scoring this season, with an average of 16.8 points and a team-high 7.8 rebounds, while Ryan Conwell adds 16.4 points. Xavier will take on UConn after this game.

Why the Cincinnati Bearcats will win

• Cincinnati has won each of its last 21 games against non-conference opponents at Fifth Third Arena.
• Xavier has lost each of its last 11 games against AP-ranked opponents.
• Xavier has lost the first half in each of its last 10 day games against AP-ranked opponents.

Why the Xavier Musketeers will win

• Xavier has won each of its last seven day games against non-conference opponents.
• Cincinnati has lost each of its last six games against the Big East Conference.
• Cincinnati has lost the first half in each of its last six games against the Big East Conference.

Xavier Musketeers vs Cincinnati Bearcats Prediction

Xavier has won their last 5 meetings against Cincinnati and is 4-1 against the spread. Over is 7-1 in their last 8 meetings and in their most recent meeting last season, Xavier won 84-79 at home. In this Xavier Musketeers vs Cincinnati Bearcats, Cincinnati is coming as a -7.5 home favorites. Cincinnati is better both offensively, scoring 0.9 points more than Xavier, and defensively, allowing 7.8 points less. While both teams have elite defenses, with Cincinnati having the 9th-best one, their offenses have been even more efficient, as they both rank on the top-80 of the nation, scoring 163.1 points per game combined. They also have elite shooting percentages, with Cincinnati having the fourth-best field goal percentage and Xavier the 18th-best 3-point percentage. Most of their recent meetings have been high-scoring ones, so I expect this trend to continue. Take the over.