Xavier Musketeers (15-14) vs. Butler Bulldogs (17-13)
March 6, 2024 7:30 pm EDT
The Line: Butler Bulldogs -2; Over/Under: +154.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Xavier Musketeers and the Butler Bulldogs meet in college basketball action from the Hinkle Fieldhouse on Wednesday night. Who comes out on top in Wednesday’s Big East showdown? Let’s dive in and find out with our Xavier vs. Butler Prediction.
Xavier Team Preview
The Xavier Musketeers come into this one looking to build on back-to-back wins after a 98-93 win over Georgetown last time out. Quincy Olivari leads the Musketeers in scoring with 19.3 PPG along with 5.4 RPG while Desmond Claude has 16 PPG with 4.2 RPG and 3.3 APG up to this point in the season. Dayvion McKnight has 12.3 PPG with 3.8 RPG and a team-high 5 APG to lead Xavier in the assist department and round out the trio of double-digit scorers for Xavier up to this point in the year while Abou Ousmane has a team-high 6.3 RPG to lead Xavier on the glass this season. As a team, Xavier is averaging 76.6 PPG on 43.8% shooting from the field, 34.4% from three and 73.4% from the foul line this season. Xavier will take on Marquette after this one.
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Butler Team Preview
The Butler Bulldogs come into this game looking to build on an 82-63 win over Depaul last time out. Pierre Brooks leads the Bulldogs in scoring with 14.8 PPG and 4 RPG while Jahmyl Telfort has 13.5 PPG with 4.8 RPG and 3.1 APG and DJ Davis has 13.7 PPG with 3.2 RPG and 2.4 APG as well this season. Posh Alexander has 11 PPG with a team-high 5 APG to lead the Bulldogs in assists while also capping off the scoring in double figures for Butler up to this point in the year. Jalen Thomas also has a team-high 6 RPG to lead the Bulldogs on the glass this season. As a team, Butler is averaging 77.6 PPG on 45.4% shooting from the field, 35.9% from three and 78.9% from the foul line this season.
Xavier vs. Butler Prediction
I’m on Butler here. It’s senior day at Hinkle and it’s Butler’s final game of the season so I think the Bulldogs want to give their fans and their upperclassmen a proper sending off at home. Not only that, Xavier is better at the little things on offense, like they’re better at the foul line, better from behind the arc and they give up fewer free throws on the other end. I think Butler wins this one late and gets the cover when all is said and done so I’ll lay the points with the Bulldogs here.
