St. John’s vs. Villanova Prediction
Will No. 24 St. John’s be able to go on the road and upset the defending national champions, Villanova, when the two meet up tonight at 7PM ET?
625 St. John’s vs. 626 Villanova
Tuesday, January 8, 2019
7PM ET – Finneran Pavilion
TV: FS1
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Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers at BetNow.eu, Villanova is the slight favorite at home tonight, as the Wildcats are getting odds of -6 points against St. John’s. The over/under total for the game is listed at 147 points. The public betting currently has 64 percent going on St. John’s as the road underdog. This information is subject to change, however, so be sure to check out our College Basketball Public Betting Page for updated figures on the game.
St. John’s bounces back
St. John’s has bounced back from its 76-74 loss at Seton Hall back on Dec. 29 by winning its last two against Marquette and Georgetown. The Red Storm are 4-0-1 against the spread in their last five games. St. John’s is 14-1 on the season, 2-1 in the Big East, 8-0 at home, 6-8-1 against the spread and 9-4-1 with the over.
The Red Storm are very solid on offense this season, averaging 84.7 points per game while shooting 48.9 percent from the field and 40.2 percent from the arc. Defensively, St. John’s is giving up 71.9 points per game. Shamorie Ponds is leading the team with 20.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game while Mustapha Heron is adding 15.6 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
Nova trying to heat up
Villanova has won its last three since a pair of narrow losses to Penn and Kansas. The Wildcats are coming off a 65-59 win at Providence this weekend and they are 3-1 against the spread in their last four games. Nova is 11-4 on the season, 2-0 in the Big East, 5-2 at home, 9-6 against the spread and 10-2-2 with the under.
Nova is led by its defense this season, allowing 65.7 points per game while allowing just 27.3 rebounds per game. Offensively, Villanova is putting up 74.3 points per game while shooting just 44.8 percent from the field. Phil Booth is leading the team with 17.3 points per game while Eric Paschall is adding 15.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.
College Basketball Betting Trends
St. John’s
The Red Storm are 5-1-1 against the spread in their last seven conference games, but just 1-3-1 ATS in their last five road games.
Villanova
Nova is 19-7 against the spread in its last 26 home games and 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games following a cover.
Prediction:
St. John’s is still a hard team to trust, but the numbers seem to back them up tonight. Nova isn’t the championship team it was a year ago. Their last home game was a struggle to get past DePaul and they also lost at Penn. While the Wildcats could come out with a win tonight, I expect this game to come down to the wire. The Red Storm have pushed or covered in all of their road games this season.
College Basketball Prediction: St. John’s +6