The No. 8 seed Butler Bulldogs (18-13) and the No. 9 seed Xavier Musketeers (15-16) will meet for the second time in seven days when they square off in the first round of the 2024 Big East Tournament on Wednesday. Butler picked up a 72-66 win last Wednesday, avenging an 85-71 loss from the Jan. 16 meeting between these teams. The Bulldogs won their final two games of the regular season after losing five in a row, while the Musketeers lost to then-No. 8 Marquette on Saturday. The winner of this first-round matchup will face top-seeded UConn in the quarterfinals on Thursday afternoon.
Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Musketeers are favored by 2 points in the latest Butler vs. Xavier odds, while the over/under is 150.5 points, per SportsLine consensus. Before entering any Xavier vs. Butler picks, you'll want to see the NCAA Basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters 2024 conference championship week on a 145-104 roll on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to last season, returning more than $1,700 for $100 players. It also has a strong 28-18 (+820) record on top-rated spread picks this season. Anyone following has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Xavier vs. Butler. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball betting lines for the game:
- Butler vs. Xavier spread: Xavier -3
- Butler vs. Xavier over/under: 150.5 points
- Butler vs. Xavier money line: Butler +103, Xavier -124
- Butler vs. Xavier picks: See picks here
Why Xavier can cover
Xavier cruised to an 85-71 victory when it hosted Butler in mid-January, easily covering the spread as a 5.5-point favorite. Sophomore guard Desmond Claude had 26 points and four assists, while senior forward Abou Ousmane nearly posted a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds. Senior guards Dayvion McKnight and Quincy Olivari combined for 35 points in a balanced effort.
The Musketeers are on a two-game losing streak, but they were within two possessions in both of those games as underdogs. Olivari leads the team with 19.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, while Claude (16.0) and McKnight (12.4) are both double-digit scorers as well. Butler has only covered the spread twice in its last eight games.
Why Butler can cover
Xavier was in a position to make a run at an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament when it was 13-10 in early February, but it lost six of its final eight games down the stretch. One of those setbacks came on the road at Butler last Wednesday, when four starters scored in double figures for the Bulldogs. Senior forward Jahmyl Telfort had 18 points, six rebounds and four assists, while senior guard Posh Alexander added 16 points, six rebounds and four assists.
The Bulldogs also cruised to an 82-63 win at DePaul earlier this month, giving them a two-game winning streak entering postseason play. Senior guard DJ Davis scored 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds in that game, shooting 9 of 13 from the floor. Butler has covered the spread in five of the last six meetings between these teams, while Xavier is 1-7 against the spread in its last eight games. See which team to pick here.
How to make Butler vs. Xavier picks
The model has simulated Xavier vs. Butler 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Under, and it also says one side of the spread is the better value. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Butler vs. Xavier, and which side of the spread is the better value? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the model that is on a 145-104 roll on its top-ranked college basketball picks, and find out.
