Check out our free Pittsburgh vs Xavier pick and preview for this NCAA Basketball game in Greensboro. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Basketball matchup.
Pittsburgh vs Xavier Pick & Preview: Sunday, March 19th Betting Odds
Panthers vs Musketeers Matchup at a Glance
- Sport: NCAAB
- Teams: Pittsburgh Panthers at Xavier Musketeers
- Where: Greensboro at Greensboro Coliseum
- Date: Sunday, March 19th
- Betting Odds: Pittsburgh +5, PITT +168 | XAV -203 O/U 151.5
Panthers Preview:
Pittsburgh will take the floor against the Musketeers with an overall record of 22-11. On the road, the Panthers will be playing their 14th game of the season, having gone 7-7. So far, the Panthers have been the underdog 16 times, going 8-8 straight up. Heading into today’s contest, they are the +5 underdogs on the spread.
Pittsburgh will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Blake Hinson who is averaging 15.52 points per game for the Panthers. Hinson is also important to the team’s ability to score on the perimeter. So far, he leads the team in 3-point shots made. Also key to the Panthers’ offensive game plan is the play of Jamarius Burton who has hit 49.7% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 15.65 points per game.
Offensive production has been hard to come by for Pittsburgh this season, as they are currently ranked 442nd in college basketball at 61.5 points per game. A major reason for low scoring totals is the fact that they have played at a below average pace, and have struggled to knock down outside shots. As a team, the Panthers’ 3-point shooting percentage sits at just 31.4%, placing them 392nd in the NCAA.
Musketeers Preview:
Xavier will take the floor against the Panthers with an overall record of 25-9. Currently, the Musketeers have been the home team 21 times, sitting with a record of 18-3. The Musketeers’ are sitting with a betting line that is -5 points in their favor. For the season, Xavier has been favored to win in 24 games, sitting with a mark of 21-3.
Xavier will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Souley Boum who is averaging 16.53 points per game for the Musketeers. Boum is also important to the team’s ability to score on the perimeter. So far, he leads the team in 3-point shots made. Also key to the Musketeers’ offensive game plan is the play of Colby Jones who has hit 51.9% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 15.24 points per game.
On offense, Xavier is scoring a rate similar to the NCAA average at 73.9 points per game. This figure has come despite struggling to knock down shots from outside. Through 34 games, they have only hit 32.5% of their 3-point field goal attempts. For the season, 35.68% of their shots have come from beyond the arc.
Free Spread Prediction: Xavier Musketeers -5
Heading into this matchup, our NCAA betting model has identified this game as a profitable opportunity and recommends taking the Xavier Musketeers to pick up the win and cover the spread as -5 point betting favorites. Although Xavier as a team is just 171st in overall shooting percentage, we see their offense putting together a strong performance against the Panthers’ defense. In addition, the Musketeers have made bettors money who have taken them to cover at home, as they are 6-4 (last 10). At -5 we see there being plenty of value in grabbing the Musketeers to come out on top and cover.
