Xavier Musketeers vs DePaul Blue Demons Prediction, 2/3/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Xavier Musketeers vs DePaul Blue Demons

Date: Saturday, February 3, 2024

Location: Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL

TV: ESPN+

The Xavier Musketeers (11-10) are traveling to Wintrust Arena on Saturday where they will play the DePaul Blue Demons (3-18).

The Xavier Musketeers played St. John's and took home the win by a score of 88-77 in their last game. Xavier ended the contest having earned a 44.3% field goal percentage (27 out of 61) and converted 7 of their 19 three-point shots. At the charity stripe, the Musketeers made 27 of 32 tries for a rate of 84.4%. With respect to grabbing boards, they compiled 38 with 14 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 19 dimes in this game while forcing the other team into 9 turnovers and earning 9 steals. In the matter of the defense, Xavier allowed their opponent to shoot 42.9% from the floor on 27 of 63 shooting. St. John's recorded 11 dimes and had 6 steals for the matchup. On top of that, St. John's collected 32 rebounds (12 offensive, 20 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. St. John's ended up shooting 70.0% at the charity stripe by making 21 of 30 shots. They converted 2 out of their 14 attempts from beyond the perimeter. In regard to personal fouls, the Musketeers walked away with 22 and St. John's totaled 24 personal fouls.

Dayvion McKnight is one player who had an impact for the contest. He ended up shooting 66.7% from the field and also earned 6 dimes. He played for 35 minutes played and pulled down 5 boards. He scored 19 points on 6 out of 9 shooting.

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Xavier comes into this matchup with a mark of 11-10 on the campaign. They turn it over 11.8 times per contest and as a basketball team they are committing 17.4 fouls every game. As a unit, Xavier is pulling down 40.0 rebounds per contest and has accumulated 345 dimes this year, which is 34th in Division 1 in terms of passing the rock. The Musketeers are shooting 35.1% on shots from downtown (147 of 419) and 73.4% from the free throw line. They are averaging 76.3 points per game (127th in college basketball) on 43.7% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Musketeers are able to force 11.2 turnovers per contest and they draw 18.6 fouls. They are conceding 33.3% from beyond the arc and they are 231st in college basketball in PPG allowed (73.2). The Musketeers are allowing a FG percentage of 41.7% (552 of 1,323) and they concede 36.6 rebounds per game as a group. They are currently ranked 351st in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 336 surrendered for the season.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the DePaul Blue Demons took a loss by a final score of 72-39 against Seton Hall. The Blue Demons earned 22 defensive boards and 5 offensive boards for a total of 27 for the contest. They also gave up possession of the ball 15 times, while earning 9 steals in the game. Seton Hall was called for 21 personal fouls for this game which got the Blue Demons to the free throw line for 22 shots. They were able to knock down 14 of the free throws for a percentage of 63.6%. In regard to shots from 3-point land, DePaul made 3 of 20 tries (15.0%). When this game wrapped up, the Blue Demons ended up going 11 for 50 from the floor which had them shooting 22.0%. The Blue Demons permitted Seton Hall to bury 30 out of 59 attempts from the floor which left them shooting 50.8% in the matchup. They finished 23.5% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 4 of 17 and ended up going 8 out of 12 at the charity stripe (66.7%). With respect to how they attacked the glass, DePaul allowed Seton Hall to get 41 in total (7 offensive).

Da'Sean Nelson ended up being a factor for the Blue Demons in this game. He scored 11 points in his 28 mins of playing time and added 2 assists for the contest. He converted 3 out of 9 for the game giving him a rate of 33.3%, and had 2 rebounds.

DePaul has a mark of 3-18 so far this year. As an offensive team, the Blue Demons are connecting on 42.2% from the field, which is ranked 300th in college basketball. DePaul has tallied 1,347 pts this year (64.1 per contest) and they average 29.9 rebounds per game. They are dishing out assists 12.6 times per contest (235th in college basketball) and they are losing possession via turnover 13.2 times per game. The Blue Demons commit 15.8 fouls per game and they go 71.9% from the free throw line.

The DePaul defense allows 36.5% on 3-point shots (175 of 480) and their opponents are connecting on 74.2% of their foul shots. They give up 15.6 assists and 36.5 boards per contest, which ranks 345th and 269th in college hoops. The Blue Demons are ranked 332nd in college hoops in points allowed per contest with 78.7. They are forcing 10.3 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 47.7% from the floor (349th in D-1).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take DePaul

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