Providence vs. Villanova NCAA Basketball Odds, Preview and Prediction (Archive)
With Providence having already clinched the regular-season title in the Big East, are the Friars vulnerable to a letdown when they visit the Villanova Wildcats on Tuesday’s sports betting card?
Providence Friars vs. Villanova Wildcats
Tuesday, March 1, 2022 – 6:30 PM EST at Finneran Pavilion
Winning the regular-season title for the first time in program history isn’t without a little controversy as Providence prepares to make the trek to Philadelphia to meet Villanova. Tuesday’s tilt is the final game before next week’s Big East Tournament for the Friars, who will end up playing three fewer games due to a long pause on the Providence schedule caused by virus issues within the program.
Villanova, meanwhile, will play the full complement of 20 league games and miss out on its fourth consecutive regular-season title in the Big East by mere percentage points. Favored on the NCAA basketball futures before the season began, the Wildcats would love to end Providence’s schedule on a sour note in front of the Villanova faithful.
‘Under’ a Winner in Four of Last Five Meetings
While Providence might be league champs and ranked No. 9 in the country, the Friars aren’t getting much respect for this one. A check of the NCAAB odds board finds Villanova favored by 10 for the contest set to be televised by FS1. Most shops are carrying 134½ for the total.
A win Tuesday evening would give the Wildcats a season sweep of the Friars after beating them on their home floor two weeks ago. Favored by four at Dunkin' Donuts Center, Villanova came back home with a win and a cover in the 89-84 final that saw the Wildcats in the lead for the final nine minutes of the contest.
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Collin Gillespie grabbed the spotlight in Villanova’s victory with a career-high 33 despite being hobbled by a sore ankle leading up to the game. The Wildcats shot nearly 51% overall, and canned 11-of-23 (47.8%) from the 3-point range. Providence was led by Nate Watson’s 20 points.
The meeting two weeks ago easily got past a 132½-point total, ending a string of four consecutive ‘under’ winners at the best online books. Providence and Villanova split their meetings the past two seasons, each posting home wins on the 2020-21 schedule. The Wildcats cruised to a 71-56 decision at Finneran Pavilion last season, and own a 69-41 lead in the rivalry.
Friars Cover Last Six as Road ‘Dogs
Ed Cooley’s crew wrapped up their first Big East crown in dominating fashion last Saturday at home with a capacity crowd on hand at Dunkin' Donuts Center. With the Creighton Bluejays in town, Providence broke a 2-2 tie three minutes into the contest and never looked back while finishing the evening with a 72-51 romp.
Favored by 4½ at GTbets (visit our GTbets Review), the Friars shot 47.5% (28-59) from the field and repeatedly found the open man with 17 assists against a flat-footed Creighton bunch. A.J. Reeves put on a show with a game-high 23 points and found the net on seven of his 10 shots from beyond the arc.
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The defense also played a huge factor with the Friars holding the Bluejays scoreless for one 6-minute stretch in the second half, and then again over the final 3:36. The clinching victory followed a pair of overtime wins, including a dramatic 99-92 triple-overtime decision against Xavier just three days earlier.
‘Over’ Cashes Five of Nova’s Last Seven
Jay Wright’s group has been idle for a week after falling at Connecticut last Tuesday. The 71-69 defeat pushed a 2-point spread on the college basketball odds charts and was accented by Huskies head coach Dan Hurley being ejected following two quick technicals in the first half. Villanova saw a 5-game win streak come to an end with the loss.
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Prior to that, the Wildcats had sort of been playing down to their competition by covering just three of the previous 10 contests. Though Villanova is even in the totals column for the season at 14-14 O/U, the Wildcats have been trending to the ‘over’ in recent weeks with five of their last seven scooting past the marks.
Even with the Villanova’s recent stretch of breeching totals, the ‘under’ remains a strong play in the Wildcats’ home games at 3-7 O/U. And that’s the direction I’m going with tonight's free college basketball pick.
NCAAB Pick: Under 134½ (-105) with Bovada (visit our Bovada Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.