Providence vs Xavier Betting Preview
College basketball handicapper JM Sports breaks down tonight’s Providence vs Xavier showdown in the Big East. At the time of posting, the Musketeers have opened as a 8.5-point home favorite over the road Friars, with the total sitting at 139 points.
Check out our College Basketball Free Picks page for betting thoughts from some of the country’s top handicappers.
Wednesday, January 26 | Big East Basketball Betting Notes |
---|---|
Point Spread: | Providence Friars +8.5 vs Xavier Musketeers |
Total: | 139 Points |
Game Time: | 6:30pm ET / 3:30pm PT |
Arena: | Cintas Center in Cincinnati, OH |
TV: | CBS Sports Network |
Providence vs Xavier Analysis
The top team in the Big East is traveling just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio to take on Xavier at the Cintas Center. Xavier holds the head-to-head advantgae, winning seven of the eight home games they played against Providence since 1997. Although with how Providence is playing, this may be the year that things turns around, their 16-2 record & 3 game win streak is on the line against a Xavier team that is 14-4.
Xavier Musketeers
While Xavier has put up an impressive record on the season, they find themselves in 6th in the Big East, seeing as three of their four losses have come against conference opponents. Xavier is 10-1 on their home court this season, where they have put up 78 PPG, and allowing just 60.1 PPG & under 37% shooting by the opposition. While they have been impressive on their home court, regardless of the site, they are holding opponents to six PPG less then they average on the year. Even though they have had an impressive year thus far, the last five games have been a struggle for Xavier, they have allowed 2 of the last 5 teams to shoot 50% or better, and they have covered just one game in the last seven against the spread.
Providence Friars
Providence takes on a team that they are familiar with, while they haven’t fared well on the road against Xavier, they have fared well on the road in general this season, putting up a 4-1 record (including a 4-1 record against the spread), and while they have put up just 60.5 PPG on the road, they are holding their opponents to under 64 PPG as well.
Providence has won four of their last five games, shooting 50.9% or better in all the previous three games, which may be needed in order to outscore Xavier, who is the 3rd best offense they have seen this season. They won both of the match-ups against the top offenses, winning by 4.5 PPG on average.
Providence has taken down some impressive teams thus far, and they are 8-0 against the spread this year against teams that are outscoring their opponents by 4+ PPG, on top of being 5-0 as an underdog this season. While Providence took down another formidable opponent in their last game against Butler, they failed to cover the spread, but Providence is 14-3 in the last two years after failing to cover the spread.
Providence vs Xavier Prediction
Even though Xavier finds themselves in 6th in the conference, they still are in the top 25 in the country, and 4th in the conference in terms of the AP poll, falling behind Connecticut in the most recent poll. Strength of schedule is a big factor in these rankings, Xavier has played one of the hardest schedules this season (#23) and it won’t get any easier as they take on 17th ranked Providence.
Opinion: Xavier (-8.5), with their record on their home court, I am riding Xavier.
Interested in placing a bet on tonight’s Providence vs Xavier contest? DraftKings is offering a $1,000 Deposit Bonus for first-time bettors in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Tennessee, Michigan, Virginia, Wyoming and Arizona.
Wednesday’s NCAAB Trends:
📝Providence is 5-0 as an underdog this season.
📝Virginia Tech is 1-6 against the spread in their last seven.
📝The over is 10-3 in Bradley’s last 13 games.
📝The under is 15-2 in LSU’s last 17 games.
➡️https://t.co/RHOuvHZvdC pic.twitter.com/lWznBEEROv— GoldSheet (@thegoldsheet) January 26, 2022
Providence vs Xavier Preview from GoldSheet
Rodney Dangerfield got more respect than the Friars are getting from the oddsmakers, as even with a 16-2 straight up mark, and up to 17th in the latest rankings, Providence is still rated a near double-digit dog tonight in Cincinnati.
While we have a healthy respect for the host Musketeers, this price still looks a bit dubious considering the X has failed to cover four straight itself, and stalled down the stretch on Sunday like a fading frontrunner at Turfway Park when getting outscored 27-11 to end the game by Marquette in a loss at Milwaukee.
Travis Steele’s supposed top-notch backcourt has also been plagued by inconsistency; third-leading scorer sr. Nate Johnson has scored a combined 10 points across the past three games while hitting just 4 of 20 from the floor and 2 of 13 beyond the arc.
Granted, Ed Cooley’s Friars didn’t notch many style points in their home wins vs. Georgetown and Butler last week out of a Covid pause, but 6-10 Nate Watson (14.1 ppg) was still effective, especially against the Bulldogs when scoring 18, including a key three-point play to ice the game, and the Friars still have exceptional balance with four double-digit scorers in the lineup. Keep in mind the Providence is also 5-0 as an underdog this season…give these guys some respect! Play Providence.
College Basketball Stat Sheet
GoldSheet prepares a daily college basketball stat sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Wednesday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s Providence vs Xavier contest.
Happy Hour Tip-Off Show
Get your daily fix of college hoops betting information with Joe Raineri and a rotating panel of handicapping guests. The Happy Hour Tip-Off Show will broadcast Monday through Friday at 1:45pm ET / 10:45am PT. Pull up a barstool and join us as we break down tonight’s college basketball card, including this Providence vs Xavier clash, from a sports betting perspective.
NCAAB Odds Screen
Sportsmemo’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the college basketball point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Wednesday’s NCAAB games, including this Providence vs Xavier showdown, from your desktop or phone.
**************************************************
Looking for more free sports picks and sports betting tips?
- Latest Betting Odds and Public Action: Live odds updated in real time, including who the public is betting on.
- Last Minute Handicapping Advice: Check out our extensive library of handicapping tips to help you become a better sports bettor. Wee also recommend browsing through our sports betting tips video library.
- Want an expert opinion? Check out the latest Free Sports Picks and Best Bets from our team of expert sports handicappers.
Make sure to bookmark all the above!