Xavier Musketeers vs Marquette Golden Eagles Prediction, 1/18/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Xavier Musketeers vs Marquette Golden Eagles

Date: Saturday, January 18, 2025

Location: Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, WI

TV: ESPN+

The Xavier Musketeers (11-7) are headed to Fiserv Forum on Saturday where they will take on the Marquette Golden Eagles (15-2).

The Xavier Musketeers stepped onto the hardwood against Villanova and walked away with a win by a score of 69-63 in their last game. Xavier ended the contest with a 40.8% field goal percentage (20 of 49) and buried 10 out of their 25 three-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Musketeers converted 19 of 26 tries for a rate of 73.1%. Concerning hauling in boards, they earned 24 with 4 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 16 assists for the matchup as well as creating 11 turnovers and getting 6 steals. When talking about defending, Xavier allowed their opponent to shoot 43.1% from the floor on 22 of 51 shooting. Villanova totaled 12 assists and had 5 steals for the contest. Additionally, Villanova collected 32 boards (7 offensive, 25 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. Villanova finished the game shooting 78.6% at the free throw line by burying 11 of their 14 tries. They converted 8 of 21 tries from 3-point land. When discussing fouls, the Musketeers walked away with 16 while Villanova accounted for 20 fouls.

Ryan Conwell is a player who came through in this matchup. He accounted for 34 points on 8 of 13 shooting. He played 31 mins played and also totaled 3 rebounds. He finished the contest at 61.5% from the floor and also recorded 4 assists.

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Xavier comes into this matchup with a mark of 11-7 on the season. They lose possession via turnover 11.6 times per contest and as a team are committing 16.6 fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, Xavier is collecting 34.8 rebounds per game and has racked up 305 assists for the campaign, which is 22nd in D-1 in terms of passing. The Musketeers are connecting on 39.3% on three-point shots (154 of 392) and 78.6% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 78.3 points per game (101st in the nation) while connecting on 45.9% from the floor.

On the defensive end of the court, the Musketeers have forced 11.9 turnovers per game while drawing 19.5 personal fouls. They are ranked 277th in college in allowing assists with 251 relinquished this season. The Musketeers defensively are allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 42.4% (448 of 1,057) and they surrender 33.0 boards per contest as a group. They surrender 33.9% on shots from distance and they are ranked 118th in Division 1 in PPG allowed (69.4).

When they last played, the Marquette Golden Eagles got the win with a final of 85-83 against DePaul. The Golden Eagles were able to pull down 21 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive rebounds totaling 28 for the game. They turned it over 6 times, while recording 10 steals in this matchup. DePaul was called for 18 fouls for the matchup which got the Golden Eagles to the charity stripe for a total of 24 shots. They were able to make 14 of the free throws for a percentage of 58.3%. When discussing shots from distance, Marquette converted 13 of 37 tries (35.1%). At the conclusion of this game, the Golden Eagles went 29 out of 68 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 42.6%. The Golden Eagles allowed DePaul to convert 33 of their 64 tries from the field which had them sitting at 51.6% for the matchup. They finished shooting 37.5% from distance by shooting 12 out of 32 and finished the contest at 5 of 8 from the charity stripe (62.5%). In reference to rebounding, Marquette permitted DePaul to grab 43 in total (10 offensive).

David Joplin ended up being a major contributor for the Golden Eagles for the game. He made 9 of 17 in the game giving him a rate of 52.9%, and earned 4 rebounds. He had 30 points in his 42 minutes of playing time and had 1 assist in this matchup.

Marquette has a mark of 15-2 this year. As an offensive team, the Golden Eagles are hitting on 45.4% from the floor, which is ranked 158th in the nation. Marquette has scored 1,365 pts so far this year (80.3 per contest) and they average 34.1 rebounds per contest. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 14.8 times per game (122nd in D-1) and they are turning it over 8.8 times per game. The Golden Eagles are responsible for committing 15.8 fouls per game and they go 74.6% from the charity stripe.

The Marquette defense concedes 31.7% on shots from distance (126 of 398) and their opponents are knocking down 71.5% of their shots from the charity stripe. They relinquish 15.3 dimes and 35.3 rebounds on a nightly basis, ranking them 317th and 236th in college hoops. The Golden Eagles defensively are ranked 68th in college in points allowed per contest with 67.4. They are able to force 16.2 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 43.9% from the field (216th in the nation).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Marquette

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