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The Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers (22-12) take on the American University Eagles (22-12) Wednesday in a NCAA Tournament First Four game in Dayton, Ohio. Tip-off from UD Arena is set for 6:40 p.m. ET (truTV). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Mount St. Mary’s vs. American University odds, and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions.
Mount St. Mary’s dominated Iona 63-49 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship Saturday while covering as a 4.5-point underdog as the Under (133) hit. Mount St. Mary’s finished just fourth in the MAAC at 12-8, but the Mountaineers won 3 straight games as underdogs in the conference tournament to take earn their seventh invitation to the Big Dance.
American University destroyed the Navy Midshipmen 74-52 Wednesday in the Patriot League Championship game while covering as a 4-point favorite as the Under (131.5) cashed. American, which tied with the Bucknell Bison at 13-5 in the regular season, averaged just 68 points per game (PPG) this season, but averaged 72 points in winning 3 straight conference tournament games. Senior F Matt Rogers leads the team at 17 PPG.
The winner of this game will be the 16th seed and face face the No. 1 Duke Blue Devils in the first round on Friday.
– Rankings: USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll
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Mount St. Mary’s vs. American University odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 10:26 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Mount St. Mary’s +118 (bet $100 to win $118) | American University -145 (bet $145 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Mount St. Mary’s +2.5 (-110) | American University -2.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 129.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)
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Mount St. Mary’s vs. American University picks and predictions
Prediction
Mount St. Mary’s 67, American University 60
Moneyline
PASS.
I like for the Mountaineers to win here, but I feel more comfotable with the points in a matchup this tightly contested.
Against the spread
BET MOUNT ST. MARY’S +2.5 (-110).
The Mountaineers have covered the spread in each of their last 6 games and are 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 contests while the Eagles are just 5-4-1 ATS over that same span. Mount St. Mary’s is also a very good 21-11-1 ATS this season.
American University scores just 68.6 PPG and that number simply isn’t good enough for the Eagles to keep the Mountaineers from covering the spread here.
Over/Under
BET UNDER 129.5 (-105).
The Under has hit in back-to-back games for American and is 7-3 in its last 10 games while also being 19-12-2 this season. For Mount St. Mary’s, the Under is undefeated in its last 5 games and is 8-2 over its last 10 contests.
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