Xavier vs Pittsburgh Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for March 19 NCAA Tournament Game (Musketeers Given Another Scare)

Updated: Sep 10, 5:00pm UTC

Xavier vs Pittsburgh Game Info

2022-23 NCAA Tournament Game
No. 13 Xavier (26-9) vs. Pittsburgh (24-11)
Date: Sunday, March 19, 2023
Time: 12:10 PM ET
Venue: Greensboro Coliseum -- Greensboro, North Carolina
Coverage: CBS

The 2022-23 NCAA Tournament Round of 32 continues on Sunday with a Midwest Region tilt between the No. 11 Pittsburgh Panthers and No. 3 Xavier Musketeers.

Pittsburgh's defense was on point in its 59-41 victory over No. 6 Iowa State, holding the Cyclones to .233/.095/.579 shooting splits. Meanwhile, Xavier fought through an early scare to pick up a 72-67 win against No. 14 Kennesaw State as Jerome Hunter led the charge with a game-high 24 points.

Which team will punch its ticket to the Sweet 16?

Xavier vs Pittsburgh Odds & Spread

All college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
Moneyline: XAVIER: (-210) | PITT: (+172)
Spread: XAVIER: -5.5 (-104) | PITT: +5.5 (-118)
Total: 151.5 -- Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

Xavier enters this contest as a clear favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 12:10 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 151.5 points with both sides available at -110 odds.

Xavier vs Pittsburgh Betting Trends

Xavier's record against the spread is 18-17-0.
Against the spread as 4.5-point favorites or more, the Musketeers are 5-11.
Xavier has seen 21 of its 35 games go over the point total.
Against the spread, Pittsburgh is 25-10-0 this year.
Against the spread as 4.5-point underdogs or greater, the Panthers are 9-3.
This season, 21 of Pittsburgh's 35 games have gone over the point total.

Xavier Rank	Xavier AVG		Pittsburgh AVG	Pittsburgh Rank
12th	81.1	Points Scored	75.2	92nd
290th	73.9	Points Allowed	69.3	151st
34th	34.8	Rebounds	33.1	94th
140th	8.9	Off. Rebounds	8.5	188th
181st	7.4	3pt Made	9.1	29th
1st	19.2	Assists	14.1	104th
222nd	12.3	Turnovers	10.7	60th

Xavier vs Pittsburgh Prediction & Pick

Though Pittsburgh looked strong defensive in the first round, that had more to do with Iowa State's offense being below average. The Panthers will have a much stiffer test against a Xavier team that averages 81.1 PPG (No. 7) on 49.4% shooting (No. 4). On top of that, the Musketeers will be looking for a statement performance after nearly being upset by the Owls.

Pittsburgh is going to have to be as accurate as possible to keep up with Xavier's offense. If not, Sean Miller's players will be there to pounce on any mistakes. The Musketeers average the 29th-most rebounds in the country (37.7 RPG) and while the Panthers put up a respectable 36.0 RPG clip (No. 79, they only averaged 30.7 RPG over the previous three games.

Xavier has also won 10 of its last 11 games in March, whereas Pittsburgh is 3-8 straight in its previous 11 outings of the month. In other words, it's clear that Xavier is the better pick to move on.

Final Score Prediction: Xavier: 78 | Pittsburgh: 74

Xavier vs Pittsburgh Best Bet

After Xavier was nearly upset by Kennesaw State, I'm going with Pittsburgh on the spread. The Panthers are 4-1 ATS in their last five outings and have covered in five of their last seven. Meanwhile, the Musketeers are an uninspiring 1-4 ATS in their last five contests and 3-8 ATS in their last 11 outings as the favorite.

If Pittsburgh can build off its latest performance, this game should be closer than projected.

Bet: Pittsburgh +5.5 (-118)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.