Big East Tournament 2022: Quarterfinal Odds, Spreads, Over-Under, Betting Tips
The 2022 Big East men's basketball tournament got underway Wednesday, but the conference's top five teams weren't in action. Instead, the six teams that finished at the bottom of the regular-season standings took the court at Madison Square Garden in New York City for the opening-round matchups.
But things are about to pick up in a big way. Four quarterfinal contests are scheduled for Thursday, as No. 4-seeded Creighton and No. 5 Marquette will go head-to-head while the top three seeds—No. 1 Providence, No. 2 Villanova and No. 3 UConn—will be facing the winners of Wednesday's games.
Thursday's winners will advance to Friday's semifinals. The championship game is set for Saturday, with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Here's a look at the schedule and odds for the quarterfinal matchups, along with betting tips for Thursday.
Quarterfinals Schedule, Odds
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Thursday, March 10
No. 1 Providence (-7.5) vs. No. 9 Butler (Over/Under: 128 points), noon ET on Fox Sports 1
No. 4 Creighton vs. No. 5 Marquette (-3) (O/U: 142.5), 2:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1
No. 2 Villanova (-5.5) vs. No. 7 St. John's (O/U: 148.5), 7 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1
No. 3 UConn vs. No. 6 Seton Hall (no line), 9:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Butler +7.5 Against Providence
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Providence earned the No. 1 seed in the Big East tournament by going 14-3 in conference play this season. Two of the Friars' Big East losses came against Villanova, while the other was against Marquette.
However, the Friars played some competitive games against the rest of their conference rivals, including both of their matchups against Butler. On Jan. 23, the Bulldogs kept things close in a 69-62 road loss. In the second meeting between the teams, Butler took Providence to overtime before falling 71-70 on its home court.
So there's a good chance that even if the Bulldogs lose to the Friars again in the quarterfinals of the conference tourney Thursday, Providence's margin of victory will be seven or fewer points. Butler snapped a five-game losing streak with its first-round win over No. 8-seeded Xavier on Wednesday, and it should give the Friars another challenge.
Bet on the Bulldogs to cover the 7.5-point spread, even though it will still likely fall to Providence.
Over 142.5 Total Points in Creighton-Marquette
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The best game on Thursday's Big East tournament schedule is the matchup between No. 4-seeded Creighton and No. 5 Marquette.
These teams both received byes into the quarterfinals, and they are set to face off for the third time this season. The first two meetings were both thrilling. The Bluejays won both contests, as they notched a 75-69 victory in double overtime in Jan. 1 and then beat the Golden Eagles 83-82 on Feb. 20. But both of those games could have gone either way.
Regardless of which team wins Thursday's matchup, it should be a high-scoring game. The over/under line is set at 142.5 total points, and Creighton and Marquette exceeded that number in each of their first two meetings. And with the stakes raised, there's a decent chance that the teams could go to overtime again.
With this likely to be a back-and-forth contest, the teams should rack up points at a high rate in the second half. Take the over in this quarterfinal matchup.
Villanova -5.5 Against St. John's
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Although Villanova ended up as the No. 2 seed in the Big East tournament, the Wildcats are the betting favorite to cut down the nets in Madison Square Garden. They lost only one more conference game than Providence, and they notched a pair of wins over the Friars during the regular season.
There's a good chance that Villanova will be playing in Saturday's championship game. And it should begin its run to that contest with a sizable victory against No. 7-seeded St. John's in the quarterfinals.
The Wildcats beat the Red Storm twice during the regular season, and they shouldn't have much trouble doing it again. Villanova's talented backcourt, featuring senior guard Collin Gillespie (16.3 points per game) and junior Justin Moore (15.3), will likely help the Wildcats put up impressive numbers in this contest.
Feel confident in backing Villanova to cover this 5.5-point spread. It wouldn't be surprising to see the Wildcats win by 10 or more points as they gear up for a run at the Big East tournament title.
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