Marquette vs. Providence Betting Pick: Can Kam Jones, Golden Eagles Cover on the Road?
The sixth ranked Marquette Golden Eagles travel to Providence tonight to take on the Friars. Can Kam Jones and the Golden Eagles cover on the road? Ben Rajavuori shares his Marquette vs. Providence betting pick.
Ben Rajavuori - December 19, 2023, 4:54 PM EST
5 minMarquette vs. Providence Betting Pick: Can Kam Jones, Golden Eagles Cover on the Road?
The sixth ranked Marquette Golden Eagles travel to Providence, Rhode Island, tonight to take on the Friars. The Friars are unranked, although they did receive five votes to have a spot in the top 25 this past week. Both teams enter this game 9-2, and this win would propel the Friars into the rankings for sure. Marquette finds themselves as 4.5-point favorites on the road here. Can they cover this number?
Marquette vs. Providence Date, Time, and Where to Watch
- Date: December 19, 2023
- Game Time: 8:30 pm ET
- Where to Watch: FS1
Marquette vs. Providence Prediction
The Friars parted ways with Ed Cooley this offseason, as the longtime Friar head coach left for Georgetown to replace Patrick Ewing. In came Kim English, who was hired from George Mason. Surprisingly, Bryce Hopkins and Devin Carter stayed for this year instead of transferring, and English brought over a few of his players from George Mason, like Josh Oduro and Davonte Gaines. However, they did lose Ed Croswell, Noah Locke, and Jared Bynum, who accounted for 34.3 points per game on last year's squad.
On Marquette's side, they are well-manned to make a late March run this year. They did lose Olivier-Maxence Prosper, but they retained Tyer Kolek, Kam Jones, Oso Ighodaro, and David Joplin. They retained the main chunk of last year's team that was so good under Shaka Smart, and their team filled with upperclassmen can do some damage this year. They already have marquee wins over Illinois, UCLA, Kansas, and Texas this year, three of which were road games. This contest against Providence will not be unfamiliar territory for them.
I love Marquette to jump out hot in this game and take an early lead. The Golden Eagles are excellent in transition, thanks to the mind of Shaka Smart, and they are good at frustrating teams early. They are 14th in turnover rate forced on defense, and Providence is 289th in turnover rate on offense.
Marquette also plays at the 13th-fastest pace on offense. They love to score quickly and get back and defend. They score fast, then frustrate opposing teams, draining the shot clock on defense. I think this will lead to a good first-half from Maquette before Providence can make some halftime adjustments and try to make a second-half comeback. The first-half spread for Marquette is only a bucket, and that is more than doable for this squad.
Marquette vs. Providence Prediction
Pick: Marquette first half -2 -110 Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds
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