College Hoops Picks: Providence Friars @ Seton Hall Pirates

Preview

The Friars (4-2, 12-6) are trying to secure their status as a bubble team (and not declare themselves NIT bound already), and they are off to the right start. While they have not defeated any of the top Big East, they have taken down DePaul, St. John's, and Cincinnati twice (originally a bubble team that is now almost definitely on their way to the NIT).

The Pirates (0-5, 9-8) started the season out on a high note—they upset a ranked USC team and shocked the nation. But since then, it's almost been all downhill. They are yet to win a conference game and have lost to the likes of IUPUI and James Madison. In fact, in their last eight games they are 1-7.

	Record	Conf	ATS	RPI	SOS	PF	PA
Providence	12-6	4-2	5-7-1	84	70	78.6	71.2
Seton Hall	9-8	0-5	6-4	124	63	76.1	73.8

	FG%	D. FG%	3P%	D. 3P%	FT%	RPG	SPG	APG
Providence	45.7	44.0	31.0	30.7	67.3	41.8	8.0	15.5
Seton Hall	43.8	43.7	30.0	32.5	74.3	38.5	9.1	12.1

Providence has looked much stronger than Seton Hall, and it shows in the numbers. They are more accurate from the floor, grab more boards, and get more assists. The two defenses are comparable, and Seton Hall gets the nod from the charity stripe.

Prediction

Current Line: Providence -1.5

Providence ATS: 5-7-1, 3-5-1 when favored
Seton Hall ATS: 6-4, 4-2 when underdog

This is one of the closest spreads for both teams this season. Unfortunately for the Pirates, I do not see this game coming down to the wire and being decided by one point (or resulting in the first Pirate conference win of the season). The Friars have looked strong in conference play, even in their losses.

Pick: Providence -1.5

*This article is also featured on CFBPlace.com—and soon to be featured on CBBPlace.com*