DePaul vs. Butler Pick
Will No. 24 Butler cruise to a big win at home today when it hosts DePaul at 1:30PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at BetDSI, Butler is the clear favorite at home, as the Bulldogs are getting odds of -18 points against DePaul. The over/under total for the game is listed at 140 points. Butler won the first meeting this season on the road, 70-69 in OT back on Jan. 21. DePaul is 2-0-1 against the spread in the last three meetings.
Butler is coming off a 110-86 win over St. John’s, but the Bulldogs are just 2-3in their last five. They now sit 20-6 overall and 9-5 in the Big East. They are also 15-9 against the spread this season despite going 3-4 ATS in their last seven. Butler is averaging 76.9 points per game on offense this season while allowing 68.3 on defense. When playing at home, Butler’s offensive average jumps up to 81.9 per game. Kelan Martin is leading the team with 15.5 points per game while adding 5.6 rebounds per contest. Andrew Chrabascz is putting up 11.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
DePaul has lost nine straight games coming into today, including a 75-62 loss at home to Villanova this week. The Blue Demons have lost by at least 11 points in their last four and sit at 8-18 on the season and 1-12 in the Big East. They are also just 9-16 against the spread for the season and only 2-8 ATS away from home. DePaul averages just 69.3 points per game on offense right now while allowing 74.3 on defense. When on the road, DePaul scores just 62.6 per game and gives up 78.7. Eli Cain is leading the team with 15.8 points per game while Billy Garrett Jr. is adding 14.8 per contest.
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I don’t feel good about giving away so many points with Butler right now, but DePaul is just that bad. The Blue Demons have lost their last five road games by double digits, losing by an average of 16.8 points in those five games. Butler is coming off a dominant home win and I think it can do the same again today, knowing it needs to take care of these bad teams to keep itself in consideration for a strong NCAA Tournament seed.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL DAILY PREDICTION: BUTLER -18