Western Carolina vs Marquette Game Information

Western Carolina vs Marquette Preview

No. 10 Marquette (7-0, 5-0 at Home) welcomes Western Carolina (2-3, 0-4 on Road) to Milwaukee for a Big East-Southern Conference mismatch on Saturday afternoon. The Catamounts come in here losers of 3 of their last 4 games, falling to Quinnipiac by 13 (67-54), Wake Forest by 13 (82-69), and Florida State by 34 (91-57), all on the Road. The Warriors have beaten two pretty good teams in national runners-up Purdue (76-58) and Georgia (89-69) and couldn’t have asked for a better start to the 2024 NCAA Basketball season. Western Carolina went an impressive 22-10 last season but hasn’t been to the Big Dance since 1972. Marquette was in the 2024 NCAA Tournament last season, winning its opener vs No. 15-seed Western Kentucky (87-69), ousting No. 10-seed Colorado in the Round of 32 (81-77) before being bounced and upset by No. 11-seed NC State in the Sweet Sixteen (67-58).

Western Carolina Faces Tall Task vs Golden Eagles

Western Carolina (1-2-0 ATS, 2-1-0 O/U) is led by G Ice Emery (14.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg), G Cord Stansberry (10.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg), F Bernard Pelote (8.4 ppg, 8.0 rpg), and F Marcus Kell (6.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg), but the Point Spread (-32.5) reveals it all here, as does the Moneyline (Western Carolina +4000). With the Golden Eagles having won 18 of their last 22 games, this one, like so many, will come to how much do the hosts really need to win by? A 20-point blowout looks like a 40-point blowout the next day anyway. The most the Catamounts have lost by this season has been 34 points (Florida State, 91-57) while Western Carolina’s biggest loss last season came by 26 (High Point, 97-71).

Western Carolina Betting Trends

• Western Carolina is 1-1 ATS vs Power 4 conference teams (FSU, WAKE)
• The Over is 2-0 in the last 2 WCU Road games after 4 straight Unders
• Catamounts Team Total Under is 10-6 the last 16 (+3.15 Units, 17% ROI)
• Western Carolina was 15-14-0 ATS last season 
• Western Carolina did not allow 100 points in a game last season

No. 10 Marquette Has Star in Guard Kam Jones

Marquette (6-1-0 ATS, 3-4-0 O/U) has been a really good team to bet on this November and the Golden Warriors have gone 27-16-1 ATS in their last 44 games (62.8%). Again, the big question here is what would make a team be inclined to win by 34 or more? The biggest Marquette win this year has been by 40 vs Stony Brook in its last game (102-62) in a game the Golden Warriors led 48-30 at Halftime. Marquette is led by star G Kam Jones (19.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 5.7 apg), F David Joplin (16.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg), G Chase Ross (12.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 3.0 apg), G Stevie Mitchell (12.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg), and F Ben Gold (8.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg), so this is a deep squad that can get Points and Rebounds from a number of places. The Golden Warriors are averaging 83.1 ppg and allowing 63.9 ppg.

Marquette Betting Trends

• Marquette is 7-3-0 ATS in its last 10 games overall
• The Under is 4-2-0 in Marquette’s last 6 games 
• Marquette was 21-15-1 ATS last season
• The Golden Warriors are 17-7 ATS in their last 24 at Home (+9.30 Units, 35% ROI)
• Marquette is 18-3 SU the last 21 at Home (+7.05 Units, 2% ROI)

Western Carolina vs Marquette Prediction

In the last two series meetings, Marquette has won by 17 (94-77, Over), with a Push laying 17 in Milwaukee in 2008 and by 46 (90-44, laying 26, Under) in a dismemberment in America’s Dairyland in 2016. This Western Carolina vs Marquette free NCAAB pick will be to look the the First Half market and take the Golden Warriors -17.5 (Bet365) as there will be more incentive for the Home team in those first 20 minutes and it’s better to back a team motivated 100% of the time as opposed to a team up 30 to 40 in the Second Half and taking it’s foot of the gas.

Kevin’s Pick: Marquette First Half -17.5