The Villanova Wildcats (18-6) take on the Baylor Bears (24-2) in an NCAA South Region semifinal Saturday evening. The fifth-seeded Wildcats and top-seeded Bears are scheduled for a 5:15 p.m. ET tip-off at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Below, we’re taking an early look at the March Madness Sweet 16 Villanova-Baylor odds and lines. Don’t forget to check out all of the remaining teams’ March Madness odds, and check back later in the week for our full Sweet 16 breakdowns, picks and predictions.
Villanova came into the tournament having lost three of its last four games in the regular season and Big East Tournament. The Wildcats advanced to this level with two relatively easy wins: A 73-63 triumph over Winthrop and an 84-61 victory over North Texas.
‘Nova is solid at both ends of the floor. On offense, the Wildcats are frequent launchers of 3-point attempts. In their Sunday win over UNT, they went 15-for-30 from distance, tying a season-high for most treys made.
Defensively, Villanova is playing some of its best basketball of the season. Over their last eight games, the Wildcats have held opponents to a 39.6% mark from the floor and a 29.9% mark from 3-point-land.
VU is trying to make a March run without senior G Collin Gillespie (knee), who averaged 14.0 points and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 37.6% from beyond the arc in 20 games this season.
Baylor is No. 3 in the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports. The high-scoring Bears (83.8 points per game, fourth NCAA) won their first 18 games this season. They fell to Oklahoma State in the Big 12 Tournament, but they’ve coasted to two wins over Hartford and Wisconsin in this tournament.
The Bears are first in the nation in 3-point accuracy (41.5%). Among the group of teams remaining, BU’s defense is below average. Baylor creates a lot of turnovers (37 through two tourney games) which fuels a solid transition game. The Bears are 3-6 against the spread in their last nine games. The Over is 8-2 in their last 10.
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Baylor vs. Villanova: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 8:40 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Baylor -300 (bet $300 to win $100) | Villanova +240 (bet $100 to win $240)
- Against the spread/ATS: Baylor -6.5 (-110) | Villanova +6.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 139 (O: -110| U: -110)
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