2 Best College Basketball Bets and Player Props for New Mexico vs. Marquette

The 7 seed Marquette Golden Eagles will take on the 10 seed New Mexico Lobos in the first round of the men's college basketball tournament on Friday at 7:25 p.m. ET.

Marquette comes into the tourney having lost 7 of their last 12. Five of those losses came against either St. John's or UConn in a Big East conference that is sending five of its teams to the tournament.

New Mexico won the Mountain West in the regular season but fell short in the conference tournament. Can they handle Shaka Smart and Kam Jones?

To see thoughts on other games, check out our full men's college basketball tournament predictions page. But for New Mexico vs. Marquette, here are my favorite bets in FanDuel Sportsbook's college basketball betting odds.

Betting Picks for New Mexico vs. Marquette

Marquette -3.5 (-118)

This matchup should spell points for Marquette's 32nd-ranked adjusted offense (per KenPom) -- enough so that we can look for them to cover a 3.5-point spread.

The Golden Eagles enter having played two of their last three games against the top-ranked defense in the nation in St John's. New Mexico's 20th-ranked defense is nothing to shake a stick at, but the Lobos operate at the fourth-fastest tempo and could play into Marquette's top offensive qualities on Friday.

Marquette scores 16.4% of its points on the fast break to New Mexico's 13.4%. The Golden Eagles also force the 19th-highest turnover rate while turning the ball over at the eighth-lowest rate. Their unique ability to turn defense into offense could be further magnified in this pace-up spot. While the Lobos sit 4th in adjusted tempo, Marquette ranks only 146th.

Expect a discrepancy in three-point volume in this one, too. Marquette ranks 40th in three-point rate (11th-highest among tournament teams) while the Lobos rank just 333th (4th-lowest).

While Marquette isn't an elite three-point shooting team, David Joplin (10 for 24; 41.7%) has been hot from downtown across his last four, and senior guard Kam Jones has shot threes at a 42.2% clip (19 for 45) across his last two tournament runs.

New Mexico's 83rd-ranked offense could fall behind against a Marquette defense (28th) that ranks out even better than its offense (32nd).

Between the Golden Eagles' ability to run out on the fast break and outshoot opponents from distance, I like their chances to cover a 3.5-point spread. No game is easy in March, but I imagine Marquette is ready to take on this tournament after facing some pretty stiff competition of late.

Kam Jones To Score 25+ Points (+200)

Big games and Kam Jones have become synonymous.

He has scored 24, 28, and 32 points across his last three outings and has averaged 22.5 points across the 11 games that came against a top-50 rated team and defense (per KenPom) this season.

Jones averaged 22.0 points across three tournament games last season despite Tyler Kolek and Oso Ighodaro carrying plenty of offensive weight back then.

This matchup against New Mexico is grounds for us to consider Jones 25-plus points at +200.

As mentioned, the Lobos rank fourth in tempo. This season, Jones averaged 22.4 points in 30-plus minute games against top-100 pace teams.

Expect a special emphasis on three-point shooting, which is where the Golden Eagles hold an advantage. Jones took at least 10 three-pointers in all three tournament games a season ago and is averaging 11.7 three-point attempts across his last three contests. The Lobos have a meh three-point D and are more skilled around the rim, giving Jones a chance to catch fire.

With that, I'd consider Kam Jones 3+ Made Threes (+132), too.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.