The 3rd-seeded Xavier Musketeers (27-9) will battle the No. 2 seed Texas Longhorns (28-8) Friday in a Sweet 16 matchup at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City. Tip-off from the Midwest Region matchup is slated for 9:45 p.m. ET (CBS). Below, we look at Xavier vs. Texas odds from Tipico Sportsbook. Plus, check out our expert college basketball picks and predictions.
The Musketeers made it here after beating 11th-seed Pitt 84-73 Sunday, covering as 5-point favorites. Six Muskies scored in double figures, led by F Jack Nunge’s 18 points and F Adam Kunkel’s 15 (all 1st-half 3-pointers). XU’s 1st-round win was a 72-67 decision against 14 seed Kennesaw State Friday with F Jerome Hunter scoring a game-high 24 points. The Musketeers didn’t cover as 12-point favorites, trailed most of the 1st half and even for a chunk of the 2nd.
Xavier is 2-3 against the spread (ATS) with a 2-3 Over/Under (O/U) record in its 5 postseason games (NCAA Tournament and Big East Tournament).
The Longhorns beat 15th-seeded Colgate 81-61 as 12.5-point favorites Thursday and topped 10th-seeded Penn State 71-66 Saturday, pushing as 5-point favorites. In their opener, G Sir’Jabari Rice hit 7 3-pointers and finished with a game-high 23 points, while G Marcus Carr and F Dylan Disu (game-high 10 rebounds) scored 17 each. Disu had a game-high 28 points and another 10 boards in the Penn State win, while Rice and Carr added 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Texas is an impressive 4-0-1 ATS in postseason play with the defense starring in a 0-5 O/U showing. The defense has yet to allow more than 66 points in a postseason game, yielding just 58.0 points per game.
Texas is No. 7 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll; Xavier is 14th.
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Xavier vs. Texas odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Sunday at 8:11 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Xavier +160 (bet $100 to win $160) | Texas -190 (bet $190 to win $100)
- Against the spread: Xavier +4.5 (-112) | Texas -4.5 (-108)
- Over/Under: 148.5 (O: -112 | U: -108)
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2022-23 betting stats (including postseason):
- ML: Xavier 27-9 | Texas 28-8
- ATS: Xavier 19-16-1 | Texas 18-17-1
- O/U: Xavier 22-13-1 | Texas 16-18-2
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Xavier vs. Texas head-to-head
According to sports.reference.com, Xavier and Texas have met just 5 times with the Longhorns holding a 3-2 edge.
The last meeting was an overtime thriller in Austin with Texas squeaking out a 78-76 home victory in the 2nd round of the 2019 NIT. The Longhorns would go on to win 3 more games in that NIT to claim the crown.
For the Musketeers, this is their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2018 when they were eliminated as the Midwest’s top seed in the 2nd round by 9th-seeded Florida State. Xavier last made the Sweet 16 in 2017 when it upset 2nd-seeded Arizona as an 11 seed.
During a 16-year span between 2000-2018, the Musketeers made the NCAA Tournament 14 times with 7 Sweet 16 appearances where they are 3-4. They have never advanced further than the Elite 8.
This is the 3rd consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance for Texas. The Longhorns, who were a 6 seed, lost in the 2nd round to 3rd-seeded Purdue last March. A year before, they were upset as a No. 3 seed by 14th-seeded Abilene Christian.
Texas made 14 consecutive appearances from 1999-2012 and only failed to receive an invite 4 times since. This is Texas’ 12th appearance in the Sweet 16 where it is 7-4, last appearing in 2008 when it routed 3rd-seeded Stanford 82-62 before losing to top-seeded Memphis in the Elite 8. Texas has never reached the National Championship game, losing in the semifinals 3 times (1943, 1947 and 2003).
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