The Michigan State Spartans (20-12, 11-8 Big Ten) will be going for their second consecutive win when they face the Marquette Golden Eagles (29-6, 17-3 Big East) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday night. The Spartans are coming off a 72-62 win over USC as 2.5-point favorites. The Golden Eagles are coming off a 78-61 win over Vermont as 10-point favorites.
Michigan State is 2-0 in two games against Marquette.
Spartans Going For Fourth Win In Five Games
The Spartans bounced back from their loss to Ohio State with a win over the Trojans in their last game. They will try to keep the momentum going with a win over the Golden Eagles, which will give them their second win in a row and fourth win in their last five games.
Michigan State is averaging 70.3 points per game. They scored 72 points in their last game, making 48.1 percent of their field goals and 35.7 percent of their three-pointers.
Joey Hauser led the Spartans with 17 points and eight rebounds. Jaden Akins finished with 12 points and six rebounds, while Tyson Walker added 12 points and three rebounds.
Michigan State has played well defensively, giving up 67.2 points per game. They gave up 62 points in their last game and will need a similar effort if they want to win this game.
Golden Eagles Going For 11th Consecutive Win
The Golden Eagles played well over the past month and come into this game on a 10-game winning streak. They will try to keep the momentum going with a win over the Spartans, which will give them their 11th win in a row.
Marquette is averaging 79.9 points per game. They scored 78 points in their last game, making 51.8 percent of their field goals and 50 percent of their three-pointers.
Kam Jones led the Golden Eagles with 19 points and four rebounds. Oso Ighodaro finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and five assists, while David Joplin added 12 points and three assists.
Marquette has played well defensively, giving up 70.3 points per game. They gave up 61 points in their last game and will have to keep it up if they want to get the win.
Emarion Ellis (Knee) is questionable for this game.
Best Bets for this Game
Full-Game Side Bet
Insiders Status:
The Golden Eagles have won 10 straight games. They are very good offensively, scoring more than 79 points per game while making 49 percent of their shots. They’ve taken advantage of their opportunities at the charity stripe, making over 77 percent of their free throws in their last three games. They do a good job finding the open man and they’re aggressive on the offensive glass, which will give them more scoring chances. They also do a good job protecting the ball and won’t give the Spartans a lot of easy-scoring opportunities. The Spartans usually play well defensively, but they struggled in recent games, giving up more than 69 points per game in their last three games, so expect them to have a hard time slowing down the Golden Eagles in this game. The Spartans have won three of their last four games. They are playing well offensively, scoring more than 71 points per game in their last three games. But they struggled at the charity stripe, making less than 70 percent of their free throws during that span. Their rebounding has been good and will keep them in this game, but they’ve been careless with the ball on the road, which will lead to easy-scoring opportunities for the Golden Eagles, who average more than nine steals per game. The Golden Eagles did a great job defensively in recent games, holding their last three opponents to 60 points per game, and won’t have trouble keeping Michigan State’s offense in check. Go with Marquette to cover the spread.
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Full-Game Total Pick
Insiders Status:
The Spartans are averaging 70.3 points per game and 70 points per game on the road. They averaged 70 points per game in two games against the Golden Eagles. They play at a slow pace, averaging 67.7 possessions per game, and they’re facing a team that is giving up 69.6 points per game on the road, so expect them to hit their average in this game. The Golden Eagles are averaging 79.9 points per game and 76.7 points per game on the road. They averaged 58.5 points per game in two games against the Spartans. They play at a faster pace, averaging 71.9 possessions per game, and they’re facing a team that up giving up 71.7 points per game on the road, so expect them to score enough points to push the score over the total.