The Xavier Musketeers take on the DePaul Blue Demons. Our college basketball odds series has our Xavier DePaul prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Xavier DePaul.
This is a game which seems really straightforward on the surface. Xavier leads the Big East at 7-0 in the conference, while DePaul is next to last in the conference. DePaul would be a last-place team in the Big East if Georgetown did not exist. The Blue Demons are 2-5 in the conference, with one of their wins being against the Hoyas. Yet, we know that crazy upsets happen in college basketball. Really strange results emerge daily in this sport. Consider Georgia Tech, of all teams, beating Miami in the ACC earlier this month, or Minnesota winning on the road at Ohio State last week. Remarkable, unpredictable plot twists are par for the course in college hoops. Could DePaul become the latest team to rise up and spring an ambush on an opponent which is several games ahead in the conference standings? We'll see if the threat of an upset materializes on DePaul's home floor.
Here are the Xavier-DePaul college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel:
College Basketball Odds: Xavier-DePaul Odds
Xavier Musketeers: -8.5 (-110)
DePaul Blue Demons: +8.5 (-110)
Over: 157.5 (-106)
Under: 157.5 (-114)
How To Watch Xavier vs. DePaul
TV: Fox Sports 1
Stream: Fox Sports app
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET, 5:30 p.m. PT
*Watch Xavier-DePaul LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Xavier Could Cover The Spread
Coach Sean Miller led Xavier to the Elite Eight in 2008. The Muskeeteers got to the West Regional Final in Phoenix but lost to Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, and the rest of the UCLA Bruins. Miller was an excellent coach at Xavier, good enough to earn the Arizona head coaching job a few years later. Miller took Arizona to the Elite Eight multiple times and was later upset by Xavier in 2017, when the Wildcats were trying to get back to the Final Four for the first time in 2001. Miller was one stop short of the Final Four, but his record at Arizona was still impressive before the FBI investigation into his program began, ultimately forcing him out of that job. Miller was welcomed back by Xavier, and the coach has made the most of his second go-round thus far. Xavier being unbeaten in Big East play is something no one anticipated before the season began. This team plays really well together at both ends of the floor. Xavier has beaten lots of quality opponents and should have little problem hammering a DePaul team which is buried below every other school in the Big East except for Georgetown, the team with an unfathomably long losing streak against Big East and power conference opponents.
Why DePaul Could Cover The Spread
The Blue Demons did beat Villanova at home earlier this month, and they are going to treat this game as their Super Bowl. DePaul knows that beating Xavier when the Musketeers are at the height of their powers would be an incredible achievement and a season-making memory. Coach Tony Stubblefield is viewed as one of the rising coaches in this business. He will formulate a plan which will keep Xavier's offense in check. DePaul, playing at home, could indeed spring the ambush which would reshape the Big East standings.
Final Xavier-DePaul Prediction & Pick
Xavier seems like the obvious pick here, but you could wait out the first several minutes if DePaul makes an early run and get Xavier at a lower point spread.
Final Xavier-DePaul Prediction & Pick: Xavier -8.5
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