The Vermont Catamounts take on the Marquette Golden Eagles. Our March Madness odds series has our Vermont Marquette prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Vermont Marquette.
The Marquette Golden Eagles had a regular season beyond their wildest dreams. Marquette won the Big East regular season championship outright, fending off Xavier, Creighton, UConn and Providence to earn the No. 1 seed at the Big East Tournament. A lot of college basketball watchers were impressed, but they also thought either UConn or Villanova would make a run at the Big East Tournament. Surely Marquette, after all that heavy lifting and hard work, was going to let up and lose steam while UConn — which had a few stumbles in Big East play — was going to come back with a vengeance and thrive in Madison Square Garden.
Nope. Marquette had plenty of fuel left in the tank. If Big East regular season was tremendous, the Big East Tournament was just as eye-opening if not more. The Golden Eagles beat UConn in the semifinals and then destroyed Xavier in the final to win both the regular season and tournament championships. Marquette demonstrating total control in the Big East is something no one predicted before the season. Marquette was picked to finish closer to the bottom of the conference than the top. Coach Shaka Smart has done one of the very best coaching jobs in the nation. Marquette was not mentioned as a No. 2 seed candidate until the final few days before Selection Sunday. This team has been under the radar for much of the year. Let's see what this team can achieve in March Madness.
Here are the Vermont-Marquette March Madness odds, courtesy of FanDuel:
March Madness Odds: Vermont-Marquette Odds
Vermont Catamounts: +10.5 (-110)
Marquette Golden Eagles: -10.5 (-110)
Over: 144.5 (-110)
Under: 144.5 (-110)
How To Watch Vermont vs. Marquette
TV: CBS
Stream: CBSSports.com, fuboTV
Time: 2:45 p.m. ET, 11:45 a.m. PT
*Watch Vermont-Marquette LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Vermont Could Cover The Spread
The Catamounts are expertly coached by John Becker. They continue to dominate the America East Conference. What is so impressive about Vermont is that the challengers in the America East are different every few years. Albany, then UMBC, then UMass-Lowell have challenged the Catamounts for league supremacy, and Vermont has been able to knock them back. Vermont begins nearly every season as the team to beat in the America East and still is the team which usually wins. That's toughness. That's a team ready to compete in March and put its best foot forward.
Marquette just won the three-day Big East Tournament and might be a little spent after all the work it has done. Vermont might not win outright, but it can certainly keep the game close.
Why Marquette Could Cover The Spread
The Golden Eagles controlled the Big East and topped good teams such as Xavier, Creighton and UConn. Those three teams (X, Creighton, UConn) are all seeded No. 6 or higher at the NCAA Tournament. Marquette clearly outclassed them. Shaka Smart gets the most out of his team at both ends of the floor. He has clearly found a sweet spot in managing his personnel and getting his players into roles which fit their skill sets. This is a fluid team. This is a resilient team. Marquette has played really, really well in the last five minutes of games all season long. This team won't fold under pressure. If Vermont makes a run, Marquette is likely to have a counter for it. Arizona is a No. 2 seed which wasn't ready to handle pressure when it led by 10 with eight minutes left against Princeton. Marquette will not flinch. It will cover the spread.
Final Vermont-Marquette Prediction & Pick
The Marquette Golden Eagles are tough and balanced. They are not going to have an empty fuel tank. Getting a Friday-Sunday bracket gave them an extra day of rest after the Big East Tournament. They will be fine, and they will win comfortably.
Final Vermont-Marquette Prediction & Pick: Marquette -10.5
Follow Us
Subscribe