Butler vs Providence Prediction 3/12/25 College Basketball Picks

The Butler Bulldogs are facing the Providence Friars on Wednesday, March 12th at the Madison Square Garden, in this Big East first-round matchup between the 8th seed and the 9th seed of the conference. The winner of this single-elimination game will face Saint John’s in the quarterfinals on Thursday. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Butler Bulldogs vs Providence Friars Prediction. We will examine:

The Providence Friars’ recent form and player performance

The Butler Bulldogs’ recent form and player performance

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Providence Friars

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Butler Bulldogs

Recent betting trends in games played between the Butler Bulldogs and Providence Friars

A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the  Butler Bulldogs vs Providence Friars game

Providence Friars Preview

The Providence Friars finished the regular season with a 12-19 record and were placed 9th in the Big East. Providence is coming off a 68-76 loss to Xavier. The Friars are 14-17 against the spread and 16-14-1 in over/under. 

Offensively, Providence is averaging 71.4 points per game, which ranks 254th in the nation. Defensively, they allow 72.4 points per game (197th). The Friars shoot 44.3% from the field (209th) and 36.2% from beyond the arc (68th). The Friars shoot 68.6% from the free-throw line (298th) and are grabbing 36.5 rebounds per game (110th).

Bensley Joseph leads Providence in scoring with an average of 12.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and a team-high 3.2 assists, while Jayden Pierre adds 12.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game.

Butler Bulldogs Preview

The Butler Bulldogs finished the regular season with a 13-18 record and were placed 8th in the Big East. The Bulldogs are coming off a 74-87 loss to Creighton. The Bulldogs are 14-17 against the spread, and 19-12 in over/under.

Offensively, Butler is averaging 74.4 points per game, which ranks 160th nationally. Defensively, they allow 73.8 points per game, which is 238th in the nation. The Bulldogs shoot 45.8% from the field (121st) and 37.1% from beyond the arc (40th). The Bulldogs shoot 74.6% from the free-throw line (93rd) and are grabbing 35.2 rebounds per game (185th).

Jahmyl Telfort leads Butler in scoring this season, with an average of 16.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and a team-high 3.5 assists, while Pierre Brooks adds 15.2 points and 5 rebounds per game.

Why the Providence Friars will win

• Butler has lost each of its last four games.
• Providence has won six of its last seven day games at Madison Square Garden against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Butler has lost the first half in each of its last four games against the Big East Conference.

Why the Butler Bulldogs will win

• Providence has lost nine of its last 10 games.
• Butler has won four of its last five day games against non-AP-ranked opponents at a neutral venue.
• Providence has lost the first half in each of its last four day games against the Big East Conference.

Total Points Facts

• Each of Providence’s last nine games against non-AP-ranked opponents at Madison Square Garden have produced a total of 148 or fewer points.
• Twenty-seven of Butler’s last 29 games against non-AP-ranked opponents at a neutral venue have produced a total of 149 or fewer points.

Matchup/League Facts

• Butler ranks 364th among Division 1 teams for opponent assist-to-turnover ratio this season (1.81).
• Butler ranks 363rd among Division 1 teams for opponent turnovers per game this season (7.5).

Butler Bulldogs vs Providence Friars Prediction

Providence is 8-2 in their last 10 meetings against Butler and is 6-0 against the spread in their last 6 meetings. Over is 3-0-1 in their last 4 meetings. Both teams are tied 1-1 wins this season, with each one winning at home. The Friars won by 84-65 and the Bulldogs by 82-81, with Providence covering the spread in both games, as both games went over the total.    

In this Butler Bulldogs vs Providence Friars Prediction, Butler is coming as -a 1.5-point favorites. Both teams have almost identical overall records this season, and both teams have just two wins outside their home court. Both teams have been in poor form lately, as the Friars are 1-9 in their last 10 games and 1-4 against the spread in their last 5 games, while the Bulldogs are coming off four consecutive losses and are 0-4 against the spread. Both teams have been involved in some higher-scoring games lately, as they are 13-6 in their last 19 games combined, and both of their meetings this season were also high-scoring ones. I expect another high-scoring affair, so take the over.

Nikos Lagouretos's Pick: Over 149.5