The McNeese Cowboys are set to take on the Purdue Boilermakers in the second round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on Saturday afternoon. The Cowboys are a 12 seed in the tournament after finishing the regular season with a 28-6 record. The Boilermakers are a 4th seed while going 23-11 this season. They are currently 5.5 point favorites with this McNeese vs. Purdue matchup set to tip off at 12:10 p.m. ET.
Game Matchup & Betting Odds
McNeese Cowboys (+5.5) at Purdue Boilermakers (-5.5) o/u 143.5
12:10 p.m. ET, Saturday, March 22, 2025
Amica Mutual Pavillion, Providence, RI
TV: CBS
Public Betting: Public Bettors Backing Cowboys
As of this writing, our CBB Public Betting page shows that 82% of bets are on McNeese. That said, this page is updated frequently so make sure that you click on the link provided so that you’re getting the most updated information.
McNeese Cowboys
The Cowboys took on Clemson in the first round of the tournament and came away with a 69-67 upset victory. Brandon Murray led the team with 21 points off the bench. Quadir Copeland added 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Their leading scorer on the season in Javohn Grace finished with just 3 points. He was 0-6 from the field. Clemson was held to just 18 points with 14:30 left in the game but made a huge comeback to finish with 67.
Purdue Boilermakers
The Boilermakers took on the High Point Panthers in the first round of the tournament and beat them 75-63. Trey Kaufman-Renn led the team with 21 points and 8 rebounds. Braden Smith followed him up with 20 points on 6 of 19 shooting from the field. The only other player to hit double digits was Camden Heide who dropped 11 points and snagged 10 rebounds off of the bench.
McNeese vs. Purdue Betting Trends
McNeese is 3-1 ATS in their first 4 games
The UNDER is 3-2 in McNeese’s last 5 games
Purdue is 1-3 ATS in their last 4 games
The OVER is 4-2 in Purdue’s last 6 games
McNeese vs. Purdue Prediction:
I like the Boilermakers to win and cover the spread on Saturday afternoon. Purdue is the better team here. The spread is short with the McNeese upset over Clemson but the Tigers did make a very big comeback to only lose by two points. They scored 54 points in one half over McNeese. Purdue ranks 10th in offensive efficiency and will start off much stronger. The Cowboys barely slipped by in the opening round but I don’t think they will fare as well in round two.
McNeese vs. Purdue Prediction: Purdue -5.5