****Updated for the night session****
The 2nd day of the Big East Tournament is under 2 hours away! Rejoice! I shouldn’t be complaining about yesterday though. Besides that atrocious Notre Dame-Rutgers affair, the games were pretty competitive and entertaining despite being played by the dregs of the conference.
Today should be better though as we’ll see some NCAA Tournament-quality squads hit the hardwood. Oddly enough, no spreads available for the night session games yet, so we’re going to wait to pick those games until we see a spread.
12:00 p.m. ET – PROVIDENCE -8.5 DePaul
- DePaul’s magical 1-game run will officially end today. It’s not that I don’t like the Blue Demons, because I was thrilled that they won yesterday. I just don’t think they can keep this close. They definitely cannot score with Providence. And even though they rediscovered defense yesterday, I don’t think they can slow down the Friars either. I think Keno’s boys will win this one going away and win by 10+. Plus, I’d rather see Providence take on Louisville. That would actually be a contest.
2:00 p.m. ET – MARQUETTE – 7 St. John’s
- This one I am a little less sure about. I really envision the Johnnies being able to keep this one close. It’s no secret that Marquette is struggling mightily. They haven’t won in a couple of weeks and maybe some doubt is creeping in. But Jerel McNeal and Wesley Matthews (and Lazar Hayward for that matter) will be the best players on the court. St. John’s is going to need to shoot the ball extremely well because they won’t get a lot of easy buckets. I feel like I’m going to regret this pick, but the Golden Eagles will cover.
7:00 p.m. ET – WEST VIRGINIA – 4.5 Notre Dame
- The Mountaineers are just stifling on defense, so it’s hard to envision the ND shooters getting many open looks. That means that the offense is most likely going to fall on Luke Harangody, who was awful last night, and Tory Jackson, who was very good. I don’t see anyone on the Irish who can account for Da’Sean Butler, and Alex Ruoff killed them in the first matchup. I’m banking on Devin Ebanks bothering Harangody with his length. West Virginia wins, and covers.
9:00 p.m. ET – SYRACUSE -6.5 Seton Hall
- After the underdogs hurt me yesterday, I can’t pick all favorites again. Plus, I love Seton Hall. I think their ability to shoot is going to kill Syracuse’s zone. Syracuse is tricky though. Are they primed for a run after beating Marquette in Wisconsin? The Pirates’ depth worries me, but I’m taking Seton Hall with the points.
