Big East foes will lock horns when the Marquette Golden Eagles (12-6) challenge the DePaul Blue Demons (6-12) at the Bradley Center. Action begins at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Jan. 20 and can be seen on FS1.
The Golden Eagles are hoping to rebound after their 74-66 loss to Xavier on Saturday. Henry Ellenson was the game’s leading scorer with 20 points. The Blue Demons, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 91-80 loss against Creighton on Sunday. Eli Cain had a team-high 21 points.
Marquette is a seven-point favorite against DePaul and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at 147 points. The Golden Eagles come into this game 12-6 Straight Up (SU) and 7-10 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have only managed a record of 3-7 ATS. Marquette is one of the best passing teams in the nation with an average of 17.4 assists per game. Marquette’s defenders rank 18th in Division I in steals with 8.6 per game. Marquette will look to take advantage of the Blue Demons and their propensity to foul. DePaul ranks 318th in the nation in fouls, averaging 22.2 per game.
As for their opponent, the Blue Demons have records of 6-11 ATS and 6-12 SU. DePaul has not performed well ATS during its last 10 games, earning a 3-7 record.
These conference foes will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their most recent meeting a season ago, Marquette came out on top, bumping its SU record to 8-2 over DePaul in their most recent meetings. On the other hand, DePaul holds the advantage ATS with a record of 6-4. Neither team held the edge in field goals, rebounds, or three-pointers in a single game during this span.
Predictions: SU Winner – Marq, ATS Winner – Marq, O/U – Over
Notes
Marquette is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games.
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Marquette’s last 8 games.
Marquette is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games.
Marquette is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Marquette’s last 5 games at home.
Marquette is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing DePaul.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Marquette’s last 7 games when playing at home against DePaul.
Marquette is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against DePaul.
The Marquette Golden Eagles have a defensive rating of 96.6 (ranked 61st), while the DePaul Blue Demons have an offensive rating of 102.4 (ranked 247th).
The DePaul Blue Demons average a field goal percentage of 45.4% this season. The Marquette Golden Eagles have a losing record of 1-3 when opponents have a FG% of 45.4% or greater.
The Marquette Golden Eagles and the DePaul Blue Demons both rank higher in average field goal percentage when compared to their effective field goal percentages. Marquette is 153rd and 99th in the nation for eFG% and FG% respectively, while DePaul ranks 157th and 107th in these categories.
The Marquette Golden Eagles rank 18th in assists per game with an average of 17.4. The DePaul Blue Demons are among the worst in the country with 12.6 assists per game (ranked 246th).
DePaul ranks 221st in offensive rebounds, while Marquette ranks at 50th in defensive rebounds.
On average, DePaul forces a turnover rate of 17.4%. When Marquette turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a solid 8-3 record.
