Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Marquette Golden Eagles Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 03/22/2024

Game Time: 2:00 pm ET, Friday, March 22, 2024

Venue:  Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN 

Where to Watch:  TBS, MAX

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  WKU +14.5, Marquette -14.5; Over/Under:  159 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  WKU +14.5, Marquette -14.5; Over/Under:  159 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  WKU +14.5, Marquette -14.5; Over/Under:  158.5 points

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  22-11 (8-8) (3rd place, Conference USA)

Marquette Golden Eagles:  25-9 (14-6) (2nd place, Big East)

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Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  3-2  last 5

Marquette Golden Eagles:  3-2  last 5

Western Kentucky is entering this game with a 22-11 record overall, an 8-8 record in conference games, and they are 4-2 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the UTEP Miners in their last game. Don McHenry led the team in points per game in that game with 25 while Brandon Newman was next on the team with 15. Tyrone Marshall Jr. led the team in assists with 3 in that game while Babacar Faye led the team in rebounds with 10. They were 46.6% from the field, 18.8% from 3-point range, and 77.8% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 80.6 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 74.1 PPG against them. Western Kentucky has an ATS record of 19-11 this season and their O/U record is 15-15.

Marquette is entering this game with a 25-9 record overall, a 14-6 conference record, and they are 4-2 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a loss against the UConn Huskies in their last game. Kameron Jones led the team in points in that game with 13 while David Joplin was next on the team with 12. Oso Ighodaro and Kameron Jones each led the team in assists with 4 in that game while Kameron Jones led the team in rebounds with 4. They were 38.9% from the field, 33.3% from 3-point range, and 81.8% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 78.3 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 69.7 PPG against them. Marquette has an ATS record of 20-13-1 this season and their O/U record is 14-20.

The current betting odds have Marquette listed as a 14.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Marquette has looked great in their games this season with their 25-9 record overall and their 14-6 conference record in the Big East which has them right near the top of their conference and also ranked inside the top 25 teams in the country. They have also looked good in their neutral site games with their 4-2 record in those. Meanwhile, Western Kentucky has looked good in their games this season with their 22-11 record overall, but they haven't looked as good in their conference games. They secured the bid by winning their conference tournament but only had an 8-8 conference record which had them near the top of the Conference USA but they were still barely over .500. They are also 4-2 in their neutral site games this year but as good as they have looked lately, they haven't seen the kind of talent that Marquette has and it doesn't help WKU that Marquette is going to be getting a key player back for this game that they have been missing in their last few. Marquette is going to be healthier in this game and will be looking to bounce back from their loss against UConn in the Big East Tournament Final. The best way to place a bet here is on Marquette to cover the spread in this game. 

Western Kentucky Marquette Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Friday, March 22, 2024 (2:00 pm ET start time) is Marquette 79 Western Kentucky 62.

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Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: 37-22 ATS as a neutral court underdog or pick. 15-5 ATS in first round tournament games. 7-3 ATS off a win against a conference rival. 20-10 UNDER off a win against a conference rival. 14-6 UNDER after 1 or more consecutive wins. 

Marquette Golden Eagles: 4-10 ATS in the first round of the NCAA tournament. 4-8 ATS after 2 straight games making 78% of their free throws or better. 13-5 UNDER in all neutral court games. 14-5 UNDER in all tournament games. 5-1 UNDER after a game with 5 or less offensive rebounds.

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  None.

Marquette Golden Eagles:  O. Ighodaro (F) Ques Fri - Knee. T. Kolek (G) Prob Fri - Oblique. S. Jones (G) out for season - Knee.

"I'm obviously extremely proud of these guys. They battled through a lot of adversity toward the end of the season and when it was time to tune out all of the outside noises and to band together and play for one another, they did it. That's hard to do in today's age with social media and people always coming at you from a lot of different angles, but, to me, that just shows the character of these young men. They cared more about Western Kentucky and winning and going to the NCAA Tournament than maybe scoring a few extra points. They deserve all of the credit. Everybody that's out there watching – these are guys that you're going to want to employ down the road because they're winners and they're about the right stuff." - Steve Lutz after his team’s win against UTEP in their last game of the Conference USA Tournament on Saturday.

“I thought we ran out of steam there probably in the last 10 minutes. Donovan Clingan was the biggest difference.” - Shaka Smart after his team’s loss against UConn in their last game of the Big East Tournament on Saturday.

D. Allen 

B. Faye 

T. Marshall 

D. McHenry 

B. Newman

O. Ighodaro 

K. Jones 

D. Joplin 

T. Kolek 

S. Mitchell

PPG: D. McHenry (15.2)

APG: D. McHenry (2.5)

Reb/G: B. Faye (5.7)

PPG: K. Jones (16.7)

APG: T. Kolek (7.6)

Reb/G: O. Ighodaro (7.2)

Coaches:

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: Steve Lutz (1st season)

Marquette Golden Eagles: Shaka Smart (3rd season)