No Easy Games in Big East As Pitt, Notre Dame Clash

Online betting players have no idea how to handicap the Big East, which is by far the toughest conference in the country and should have at least two No.1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament after three last season. A recent hot streak has Pitt in the thick of the battle for the conference title, but they have to be careful when they head to explosive Notre Dame on Wednesday.

Pitt vs Notre Dame odds – Wednesday, February 24, 7:00 PM ET

The No.12 Panthers (21-6, 10-4) made some clutch free throws late in a 70-65 win over Villanova to tighten the race atop the Big East, and they lived at the charity stripe, going 26-of-34 from the foul line while the Wildcats were just 11-of-16. Ashton Gibbs led the way with 21 points and was 9-of-12 from the line, while Gilbert Brown came off the bench to add 16 points. Jermaine Dixon had a tough 3-of-15 day from the floor, but he added six boards, three assists, three steals and three blocks, and summed up this year’s Pitt team perfectly: they are willing to do the dirty things a team needs to do to win.

The Fighting Irish (17-10, 6-8) is one the teams that proves that the Big East is like a super casino, as they’re one of eight teams in the conference between five and eight wins. Notre Dame came up just short in a 91-89 double-overtime thriller at Louisville, and they played their second straight game with preseason All-American forward Luke Harangody, who is out with a knee bruise. Tim Abromaitis tried to pick up the slack with 29 points, while Ben Hansbrough added 21 points for the Fighting Irish, who were 10-of-24 from beyond the arc, but they made 12 fewer free throws than the Cardinals, which was the difference in a very tight game.

Notre Dame should be the sportsbook favorites at home, as they’re 15-3 at the Joyce Center. The Panthers have won six of their last seven against the Fighting Irish, and Notre Dame just isn’t the same with  Harangody in the lineup. His presence in the post gives the perimeter shooters more time to get prepared for their shots, and they were playing a defensively undisciplined team in Louisville. There will be no such luck against the Panthers, who are one of the best teams in the nation at that end of the floor, and the trio of Gibbs, Brown and Dixon will smother the Notre Dame shooters without Harangody in the lineup. Look for the Panthers to slow the pace of the contest and make it a game of minimal possessions to swing it in their favor.

College basketball betting pick: Pitt