The West Virginia Mountaineers will take on the Maryland Terrapins on Thursday afternoon in a First Round matchup of the 2023 NCAA Tournament at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham. With that said, check out our college basketball odds series which has our West Virginia-Maryland prediction and pick.

West Virginia finished the regular season with a 19-14 record, going 7-11 in conference play. Bob Huggins' squad won one game in the Big 12 tournament before being eliminated by Kansas 78-61. The Mountaineers were solid in neutral site games, going 3-2.

Maryland enters the NCAA Tournament with a 21-12 record, going 11-9 in Big Ten play. At the XFINITY Center, the Terrapins compiled a dominant 16-1 record. Like the Mountaineers, the Terps also won one game before being eliminated in their conference tournament.

Here are the West Virginia-Maryland March Madness odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

March Madness Odds: West Virginia-Maryland Odds

West Virginia Mountaineers: -2.5 (-102)

Maryland Terrapins: +2.5 (-120)

Over: 137.5 (-115)

Under: 137.5 (-105)

How To Watch West Virginia vs. Maryland

TV: CBS

Stream: NCAA March Madness Live

Time: 12:15 PM ET/ 9:15 AM PT

*Watch college basketball LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why West Virginia Could Cover The Spread

Erik Stevenson, playing at his fourth school in five seasons, paces the Mountaineer offense with 15.5 points per game, shooting 38.1 percent from behind the arc. Tre Mitchell leads the team with 5.5 rebounds, ranking second with 11.6 points per game. Mitchell has shot an impressive 47.1 percent from the field. Kedrian Johnson, a JUCO transfer in his third season with West Virginia, has averaged 11.2 points per game, leading the team with an 82.1 free throw percentage. Emmitt Matthews, Jr. is the fourth and final Mountaineer in double-digits, averaging 10.4 points per game, shooting 47.8 percent from the field. As a team, West Virginia has shot 45.3 percent from the field. The Mountaineers have averaged 76.3 points per game on offense while allowing 71.0 points per game to their opponents.

West Virginia ranks 15th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 52nd in adjusted defensive efficiency according to KenPom.

Why Maryland Could Cover The Spread

Maryland’s offense is led by Jahmir Young, who is averaging 16.1 points, 3.2 assists, and 1.3 steals per game, all of which lead the team. Hakim Hart is second with 11.5 points per game on 48.2 percent shooting. Donta Scott is tied for second with 11.5 points and ranks second with 5.9 rebounds per game. Julian Reese leads the team with 7.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game, also scoring 11.2 points per game. Don Carey leads the team with an 86.8 free throw percentage, albeit in a relatively small sample size. The Terrapins have averaged 70.4 points per game, shooting 44.9 percent from the field. On defense, opponents have managed just 63.2 points per game against Maryland. The Terps have held their opponents to a measly 32.1 shooting percentage from behind the three-point line.

KenPom ranks Maryland 35th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 33rd in adjusted defensive efficiency.

Final West Virginia-Maryland Prediction & Pick

This is likely to be a popular upset pick, so let's go against the public opinion in this one.

Final West Virginia-Maryland Prediction & Pick: +2.5 (-120), over 137.5 (-115)