Florida vs. Marquette Spread at Golden Eagles -1.5
Carrie Stroup here with your Florida vs. Marquette spread, which was coming in at Golden Eagles -1.5. You can find all the latest NCAA Basketball Tournament betting odds here at Sportsbook.com, which was offering up to $250 in FREE CASH. The bonus code is CARRIE STROUP (restrictions do apply).
Sportsbook.com Line & Total: Marquette -2 & 147
Opening Line & Total: Golden Eagles -1.5 & 146
After destroying its first two opponents in the NCAA Tournament, No. 7 seed Florida expects a much closer game in Friday’s Sweet 16 matchup with third-seed Marquette.
The Gators opened the NCAAs with a 71-45 drubbing of Virginia and followed that up with 34-point drilling (84-50) of Norfolk State. Florida is such a dangerous team because it has so many offensive weapons to choose from. The Gators make 9.8 threes per game (most in nation) at an impressive 38.3% clip. They also play very smart with a 1.35 assist-to-turnover ratio (12th in nation) and commit just 15.6 fouls per game (19th in D-I). And although Florida does not have a lot of size in the paint, the team has done a great job limiting opposing star big men this tournament, holding UVa’s PF Mike Scott (18.1 PPG, 8.4 RPG) to 15 points and six rebounds and completely shutting down Norfolk State C Kyle O’Quinn (15.9 PPG, 10.4 RPG), who had just four points (1-of-9 FG) and three rebounds. That doesn’t bode well for Marquette star PF Jae Crowder, and if Crowder is held in check, the Golden Eagles don’t shoot well enough from downtown (33.9% 3-pt FG) to stay in this game.
Florida has shot an identical 28-for-53 (53%) in both of its tournament games, but more impressively, the Gators have dominated the glass with an 87-54 rebounding edge. Their two opponents have made just 36-of-113 shots (31.9% FG), which obviously contributes to the rebounding disparity. Leading scorer G Kenny Boynton (16.3 PPG) was just 3-of-10 for eight points against Virginia, but dominated Norfolk State with 20 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Six-foot-3 freshman G Bradley Beal (14.6 PPG, 6.5 RPG) is the team’s most complete player who contributes in all facets. He’s had a tremendous four-game postseason (2 SEC, 2 NCAA) with 16.0 PPG and 8.8 RPG. Senior PG Erving Walker (12.1 PPG) leads the team with 4.7 APG, but has just five assists and four turnovers in the two NCA games. He’s also in a prolonged shooting slump, making just 33% of his shots (15-of-45 FG) in March.
Marquette has been a great bet outside of Milwaukee, going 12-6 ATS on road/neutral courts. The Golden Eagles are great on the perimeter, ranking among the nation’s top-20 teams in assists (16.7 APG), steals (8.7 SPG) and turnover margin (+3.4 per game). They aren’t as effective down low, getting outrebounded on the season and blocking just 3.5 shots per game. The senior Crowder (17.4 PPG, 8.1 RPG) has been tremendous in all areas over the first two NCAA Tournament games, averaging 21.0 PPG, 14.5 RPG, 3.5 SPG and 3.0 APG. His 17 points and 13 rebounds in Saturday’s 62-53 win over Murray State gives him five straight double-doubles. Fellow senior teammate G Darius Johnson-Odom (18.5 PPG) has 18.5 PPG in two NCAA games and has scored 17+ points in nine of his past 10 games.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
