The Xavier Musketeers take on the Seton Hall Pirates. Our college basketball odds series has our Xavier Seton Hall prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Xavier Seton Hall.
The Seton Hall Pirates are on the bad side of the bubble, but when a team is on the bad side of the bubble in late February, just a few weeks before Selection Sunday, it wants to play tough teams. It wants to face opponents who could provide a quality win. Here we are. Seton Hall could gain a lot of ground on other bubble teams if it can beat Xavier, a team which is solidly in the NCAA Tournament and has been in the top four of the Big East Conference standings nearly the whole season. If Seton Hall can pass this test, it will move several spots up the board and give itself a chance to play its way into the NCAA Tournament in the first week and a half of March.
Seton Hall has lost three out of its last four, but so has Xavier. Both teams are struggling late in the season, and both at the offensive end of the floor. Seton Hall lost its most recent game, scoring 55 in a defeat at UConn. Xavier scored only 63 points in a recent loss at home to Villanova. Which team will figure out its offense, and if neither does, who will handle late-game pressure better?
Here are the Xavier-Seton Hall college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel:
College Basketball Odds: Xavier-Seton Hall Odds
Xavier Musketeers: -1.5 (-110)
Seton Hall Pirates: +1.5 (-110)
Over: 142.5 (-110)
Under: 142.5 (-110)
How To Watch Xavier vs. Seton Hall
TV: Fox Sports 1
Stream: Fox Sports app
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET, 4:00 p.m. PT
*Watch Xavier-Seton Hall LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Xavier Could Cover The Spread
The Xavier Musketeers did lose to Villanova, but Villanova star Justin Moore played his best game of the season, looking like the elite player who played for Jay Wright and gave Nova a lot of upside before his injury. Villanova with a healthy Justin Moore is a much better version of Villanova than what we saw through early February. Moore was out for the first two months of the season. He came back into the lineup in mid-January and needed a few weeks to find his sea legs. Xavier was the unlucky victim of Moore's emergence. If you adjust for that reality while also noting that Xavier recently lost a one-point game on the road to Marquette, the soon-to-be Big East champion barring a total collapse, it's clear that Xavier is playing better than Seton Hall — not great on an absolute scale, but better than the Pirates in a two-team comparison.
Seton Hall is a mess on offense. This team plays great defense, but it managed only 55 points against UConn and consistently struggles to score. Xavier will not face a player with Justin Moore-level talent when it goes up against the Pirates' offense. Xavier should be able to keep the SHU offense under wraps and win.
Why Seton Hall Could Cover The Spread
The Pirates are going to be the more desperate and inspired team since they are playing for an NCAA Tournament berth. Xavier is safely in the NCAA Tournament but does not have a great chance of winning the regular-season Big East championship. The motivational aspect of this game hugely favors Seton Hall, whereas Xavier is in a much more uncertain frame of mind. Hunger and intensity certainly matter at this time of year, when fatigue and accumulated minutes are real and teams often need to be able to push through the tiredness and soreness which are natural in late-season college basketball. Seton Hall will have more left in the tank for this game, especially since it hasn't played since this past Saturday, February 18.
Final Xavier-Seton Hall Prediction & Pick
Stay away from this game. It feels uncertain and volatile. If you insist on a pick, lean to Seton Hall because it is fresher and more rested and playing at home.
Final Xavier-Seton Hall Prediction & Pick: Seton Hall +1.5
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