The No. 9 Villanova Wildcats (16-4 overall, 11-3 Big East) travel to meet the Providence Friars (12-12, 8-10) Saturday in Alumni Hall for a 2:30 p.m. ET tip-off. Below, we analyze the Villanova-Providence odds and lines, with NCAA college basketball picks and predictions.
Rankings courtesy of Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Villanova at Providence: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 6:35 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Villanova -200 (bet $200 to win $100) | Providence +165 (bet $100 to win $165)
- Against the spread/ATS: Villanova -4.5 (-110) | Providence +4.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 139.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Villanova at Providence: Three things to know
- The Wildcats won an emotional game over visiting Creighton on Wednesday night, but they lost PG Collin Gillespie to a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee. He is expected to miss the rest of the season. Gillespie was second on the team with 14.0 points per game, and he led the club with 4.6 assists per outing while also helping with 3.3 rebounds and 1.0 steals per contest.
- Villanova spanked Providence in suburban Philly back on Jan. 23, winning 71-56 while covering an 11.5-point spread. That was at home, though. The Wildcats have lost three in a row on the road, falling at Butler, at Creighton and at St. John’s. Their last win away from home was Jan. 30 at Seton Hall.
- The Friars were humbled 81-67 by St. John’s and they have dropped two of the past three. Both of those losses were on the road, however. At home, they have won each of the past two, including a solid victory over Xavier on Feb. 24 at 1.5-point underdogs, 83-68.
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Villanova at Providence: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Providence 72, Villanova 69
Money line (ML)
PROVIDENCE (+165) is worth a look as moderate home ‘dogs, as Villanova (-200) is coming off an emotional roller coaster. They won the big mid-week clash with Creighton, but they lost one of their stars.
And the Wildcats haven’t been very good on the road lately, so the value play is backing the Friars.
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Against the spread (ATS)
PROVIDENCE +4.5 (-110) is the way to go if you don’t trust them straight up, but expect a tight game. The Wildcats are 0-3 ATS in their past three forays away from home, and the Friars are 5-2 ATS across their past seven at home.
Providence is also a sparkling 6-0 ATS in their previous six at home against teams with a winning road record.
Over/Under (O/U)
OVER 139.5 (-110) is a good bet, even though Villanova is missing one of their stars on offense. While they lose some point production, they also lose a little bit of defense, too. Providence should be able to take advantage.
The Over is 4-1 in Villanova’s past five on the road, too. This one won’t be end-to-end action, as Providence has trended more to the Under, but it will inch across the finish line to the Over.
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