The No. 1 Xavier Musketeers defeated the overmatched No. 16 Texas Southern Tigers, 102-83, on Friday, March 16, in the 2018 NCAA Tournament’s Round of 64. Xavier was a heavy favorite and just failed to cover the 19.5-point spread. The game went well over on the total of 160.5.
Xavier, the top seed in a West bracket that also features North Carolina and Michigan, will move on to face the winner of Florida State vs. Missouri in the Round of 32. Odds for that Sunday matchup will soon be released by BetDSI Sportsbook, but we anticipate Xavier will be favored, perhaps by as many as 10 points.
Senior guard J.P. Macura scored 29 points on 11-for-16 shooting to pace the Musketeers on Friday. Macura added six rebounds. Xavier shot the ball exceptionally from downtown, going 11 for 24 from beyond the arc. The Musketeers also out-rebounded Texas Southern, which won a First Four matchup Wednesday to qualify for the Round of 64, 42-31.
Despite securing a No. 1 seed, Xavier had only the 10th-best odds to win the tournament, with BetDSI pegging the Musketeers at +2200 to cut down the nets in San Antonio. Texas Southern entered the tournament with much slimmer odds at +100000, tied for the slimmest odds in the tournament.
Here are the pre-tourney odds for every team:
Odds to Win 2018 NCAA Tournament
Villanova +400
Duke +550
Virginia +600
Michigan State +750
Michigan +1000
Purdue +1250
Arizona +1300
Kansas +1700
North Carolina +2000
Xavier +2200
Kentucky +2300
Cincinnati +2500
Gonzaga +2500
West Virginia +3500
Wichita State +4000
Texas Tech +4500
Tennessee +4500
Auburn +6000
Ohio State +7500
Rhode Island +10000
Missouri +10000
Florida +12000
Texas A&M +15000
Clemson +15000
Houston +15000
TCU +17000
Virginia Tech +17000
Alabama +20000
Seton Hall +20000
Butler +20000
NC State +21000
Arkansas +22000
Miami +22000
Nevada +25000
Providence +25000
UCLA +25000
Texas +28000
Creighton +28000
Florida State +28000
Kansas State +30000
Oklahoma +30000
Arizona State +35000
Syracuse +35000
New Mexico State +50000
Davidson +50000
St. Bonaventure +50000
Pennsylvania +55000
Loyola Chicago +60000
San Diego State +65000
Montana +75000
Wright State +75000
Stephen F. Austin +75000
South Dakota State +75000
Buffalo +100000
Texas Southern +100000
Radford +100000
Iona +100000
UMBC +100000
LIU Brooklyn +100000
NC Central +100000
UNC Greensboro +100000
Lipscomb +100000
CS Fullerton +100000
Bucknell +100000
Georgia State +100000
Murray State +100000
