SoCon Tournament: Furman vs. Western Carolina odds, picks and predictions

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The Furman Paladins (16-15) and Western Carolina Catamounts (22-9) meet Saturday in the Southern Conference (SoCon) Tournament quarterfinals at the Harrah’s Cherokee Center in Asheville, N.C. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Furman vs. Western Carolina odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.

The 5-seed Paladins and 4-seed Catamounts split the regular-season series, with Furman winning 65-62 in Greenville, S.C., Jan. 20, while Western Carolina covered as a 4-point underdog as the Under (153.5) cashed. The teams met in Cullowhee, N.C. Feb. 28, with Western Carolina protecting its home court in an 85-77 win to cover as a 2-point favorite with the Over (147) cashing.

Furman limped to the finish line of the regular season, dropping the final 2 games, and 3 of the final 4 outings, including the game at Western Carolina. The Paladins are a dismal 3-8 ATS in the past 11 games, while cashing the Over in the past 3 outings.

Western Carolina closed out the regular season with 3 straight wins and covers, and the Under is on a 7-1 run for the Catamounts.

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Furman vs. Western Carolina odds

Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 3:41 a.m. ET.

Moneyline (ML): Furman -108 (bet $108 to win $100) | Western Carolina -112 (bet $112 to win $100)
Against the spread: Furman +1.5 (-122) | Western Carolina -1.5 (+100)
Over/Under (O/U): 146.5 (O: -115 | U: -111)

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Furman vs. Western Carolina picks and predictions

Prediction

Western Carolina 76, Furman 72

Moneyline

WESTERN CAROLINA (-112) isn’t a bad play straight up if you don’t want to mess around with the little bit of points. These teams split the regular-season series, but the Catamounts come into the tourney as the much hotter team.

Furman (-108) really folded down the stretch, including the loss to WCU in the penultimate game of the regular season.

Against the spread

WESTERN CAROLINA -1.5 (+100) is a strong play at even-money. You simply need the Catamounts to win by a bucket, and there is no juice. That’s quite the value, especially since the Catamounts were 3-0 ATS in the final 3 outings, while Furman was a dismal 3-8 ATS in the past 11 outings.

However, don’t wager more than 1½ units between the 2 plays — Western Carolina moneyline (-112) and WCU spread -1.5 (+100).

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Over/Under

OVER 146.5 (-111) is worth playing lightly in this SoCon tourney battle, but go with a half-unit wager at most.

The total went high in the final 3 regular-season games for the Paladins, including the most recent matchup against the Catamounts. That Over was a rarity for WCU, though, as it is the only total to go high in the past 8 outings since Feb. 7. Proceed with caution.

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