Villanova Wildcats vs DePaul Blue Demons Prediction, 12/23/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Villanova Wildcats vs DePaul Blue Demons

Date: Saturday, December 23, 2023

Location: Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL

TV: ESPN+

The Villanova Wildcats (8-4) are traveling to Wintrust Arena on Saturday where they will compete against the DePaul Blue Demons (2-8).

The Villanova Wildcats faced off with Creighton and walked away with a win by a score of 68-66 in their last contest. Concerning personal fouls, the Wildcats ended up finishing with 15 and Creighton finished the game with 13 personal fouls. They also knocked down 5 of 24 attempts from beyond the arc. Creighton finished the game at 71.4% when shooting free throws by burying 15 of their 21 attempts. On top of that, Creighton had 46 rebounds (9 offensive, 37 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Creighton distributed 10 dimes and had 5 steals in this contest. When it comes to the defense, Villanova allowed the other team to go 39.7% from the floor on 23 of 58 shooting. They also recorded 7 assists for this contest as well as creating 16 turnovers and earning 10 steals. In the matter of pulling down boards, they earned a total of 30 with 4 of them being offensive. At the charity stripe, the Wildcats buried 7 of their 10 tries for a percentage of 70.0%. Villanova wrapped up the game having earned a 40.9% FG percentage (27 out of 66) and converted 7 out of their 22 three-point shots.

Eric Dixon is someone who was a major contributor in the game. He accounted for 32 points on 12 out of 21 shooting. He played for 37 minutes and snagged 6 boards. He finished the game at 57.1% from the field and totaled 1 assist.

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Villanova will enter this matchup with a win-loss mark of 8-4 so far this year. They have an average of 72.8 pts per game (241st in the country) on 40.3% from the field. The Wildcats are connecting on 32.1% on shots from distance (112 of 349) and 81.3% from the free throw line. As a team, Villanova is collecting 38.2 rebounds per game and has accounted for 137 assists for the season, which has them ranked 256th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They are losing possession via turnover 9.8 times per game and as a team they are committing 15.9 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on defense, the Wildcats have forced 12.3 turnovers per game while drawing 17.1 personal fouls. They currently rank 246th in college hoops in giving up assists with 152 relinquished for the campaign. The Wildcats defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 41.0% (274 of 668) and they concede 34.3 boards per contest as a team. They give up 35.1% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 51st in college hoops in PPG allowed (64.8).

The last time they took the court, the DePaul Blue Demons took a loss by a final score of 56-46 against Northwestern. In reference to how they rebounded, DePaul permitted Northwestern to grab 32 in all (8 on the offensive side). They finished 25.0% from distance by going 8 out of 32 and ended up shooting 6 out of 7 from the charity stripe (85.7%). The Blue Demons allowed Northwestern to convert 21 of their 59 tries from the field which had them at 35.6% in this game. In all, the Blue Demons ended up going 13 out of 45 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 28.9%. In relation to shooting from beyond the arc, DePaul made 4 of 22 tries (18.2%). They were able to bury 16 of them for a rate of 84.2%. Northwestern committed 16 personal fouls for this contest which got the Blue Demons to the free throw line for a total of 19 attempts. They also gave up possession of the ball 12 times, while recording 5 steals in this matchup. The Blue Demons snagged 25 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive boards totaling 31 for this contest.

Jeremiah Oden ended up having an impact for the Blue Demons for the game. He earned 12 points in his 37 mins on the court, but didn't get an assist. He knocked down 3 of 12 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 25.0%, and had 4 rebounds.

DePaul has a win-loss record of 2-8 so far this year. The Blue Demons are committing 16.9 personal fouls per contest while shooting 73.5% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 14.2 times per game (139th in the nation) and they are losing possession via turnover 14.8 times per game. DePaul has tallied 685 points so far this season (68.5 per contest) and they pull down 31.7 rebounds per game. As an offensive unit, the Blue Demons are hitting on 44.0% from the field, which is ranked 227th in college basketball.

The Blue Demons on the defensive end are ranked 304th in college hoops in points per game surrendered with 76.3. They are forcing 11.1 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 45.5% from the floor (309th in college basketball). The DePaul defense surrenders 34.3% on 3-point attempts (72 of 210) and their opponents are knocking down 69.3% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have allowed 14.6 dimes and 35.8 total rebounds per game, which ranks 303rd and 225th in college basketball.

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Villanova

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