Butler Bulldogs vs Xavier Musketeers Prediction, 2/18/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Butler Bulldogs vs Xavier Musketeers

Date: Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Location: Cintas Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: ESPN+

Cintas Center is the location where the Xavier Musketeers (15-10) will try to defeat the Butler Bulldogs (11-13) on Tuesday.

The Butler Bulldogs faced off with Providence and notched a win by a score of 82-81 in their last contest. Butler wrapped up the contest with a 50.0% field goal percentage (30 out of 60) and converted 10 out of their 19 3-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Bulldogs knocked down 12 of their 21 attempts for a rate of 57.1%. In reference to rebounding, they collected 30 with 10 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 16 assists in this matchup as well as forcing 10 turnovers and earning 6 steals. With regard to defending, Butler let their opponent shoot 50.0% from the floor on 30 of 60 shooting. Providence dished out 20 assists and had 6 steals in the game. Furthermore, Providence collected 20 boards (4 offensive, 16 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Providence ended up going 83.3% from the charity stripe by making 5 of their 6 shots. They made 16 of their 32 attempts from downtown. With respect to fouls, the Bulldogs ended up finishing with 10 while Providence finished the game with 18 fouls.

Jahmyl Telfort is one player who was a major contributor for the contest. He walked away with 24 points on 9 of 17 shooting. He was on the court for 34 mins and also collected 5 rebounds. He finished 52.9% from the floor and earned 4 dimes.

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Butler will enter this game with a win-loss mark of 11-13 for the campaign. They turn it over 11.5 times per game and as a team they commit 14.0 fouls every game. As a team, Butler is pulling in 35.6 rebounds per game and has 343 dimes for the season, which has them ranked 182nd in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Bulldogs are hitting 37.5% on shots from 3-point land (194 of 518) and 73.5% from the free throw line. They have an average of 73.7 points per contest (203rd in the country) on 45.8% from the field.

On defense, the Bulldogs have forced 7.7 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 18.4 fouls. They currently rank 89th in the country in allowing assists to the opposition with 299 conceded for the campaign. The Bulldogs defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 42.8% (649 of 1,517) and they relinquish 33.3 rebounds per game as a team. They are giving up 31.1% from 3-point land and they are ranked 186th in college in points per game allowed (71.7).

The last time they took the court, the Xavier Musketeers took home the win by a final score of 91-82 when they played Providence. The Musketeers were able to pull down 25 defensive boards and 8 offensive boards for a total of 33 for the game. They coughed up the ball 10 times, while getting 7 steals in the game. Providence had 16 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Musketeers to the free throw line for a total of 29 tries. They were able to convert 26 of those for a percentage of 89.7%. When it comes to shots from beyond the perimeter, Xavier buried 13 out of their 27 attempts (48.1%). In all, the Musketeers finished the game shooting 26 for 59 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 44.1%. The Musketeers permitted Providence to convert 36 out of 67 tries from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 53.7% for the matchup. They finished 32.0% from distance by going 8 out of 25 and walked away from this one shooting 2 out of 10 at the free throw line (20.0%). Regarding how they attacked the glass, Xavier permitted Providence to snag 32 overall (10 on the offensive side).

Dante Maddox Jr. was important for the Musketeers for the matchup. He buried 7 of 11 in this matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 63.6%, and had 3 rebounds. He scored 26 points in his 30 minutes on the hardwood and added 1 assist for the matchup.

Xavier has a mark of 15-10 so far this season. When it comes to offensive execution, the Musketeers are shooting 45.6% from the field, which ranks them 144th in Division 1. Xavier has accumulated 1,926 points so far this year (77.0 per contest) and they average 34.0 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 16.4 times per contest (34th in D-1) and they are turning it over 11.6 times per contest. The Musketeers are committing 15.9 fouls every game and they connect on 78.6% from the charity stripe.

The Musketeers defensively are ranked 166th in college in points allowed per game with 71.0. They have forced 12.1 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 44.0% from the floor (205th in college). The Xavier defense concedes 33.6% on shots from beyond the perimeter (174 of 518) and their opponents are connecting on 71.7% of their free throw attempts. They allow 14.5 assists and 33.0 total boards per game, which is 294th and 101st in D-1.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Butler

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