The 15th-seeded Princeton Tigers (23-8) battle the No. 6-seed Creighton Bluejays (23-12) Friday in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. Tip from KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky., is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET (TBS). Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Princeton vs. Creighton odds as we make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
Princeton has become the Cinderella team of the tournament with wins against 2nd-seeded Arizona (59-55 as a 15-point underdog) in the first round and 7th-seeded Missouri in the second round (78-63 as a 6-point underdog). The Tigers have won 8 of their last 10 games and are 8-2 against the spread (ATS) in that span to improve to 17-12 ATS this season.
Creighton knocked off No. 11 seed NC State (72-63 as a 5.5-point favorite) in the first round and took down No. 3 seed Baylor (85-76 as a 1.5-point favorite) in the second round. The Bluejays are 6-4 straight up and ATS in their last 10 games, improving to 18-17 ATS on the year.
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Princeton vs. Creighton odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:05 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Princeton +410 (bet $100 to win $410) | Creighton -525 (bet $525 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Princeton +9.5 (-102) | Creighton -9.5 (-118)
- Over/Under (O/U): 140.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Princeton vs. Creighton picks and predictions
Prediction
Creighton 77, Princeton 69
Moneyline
PASS.
There’s no real profit to be made on a likely Creighton (-525) win Friday, and I’d like to see more value before taking Princeton (+425) outright for a 3rd upset.
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Against the spread
BET PRINCETON +9.5 (-102).
Princeton has had an impressive tournament showing thus far and it will not go down without a fight. The Tigers are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games, 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games following an ATS victory and 4-0 ATS in their last 4 NCAA Tournament games. Seven players have scored in both of their wins as the Tigers have received meaningful contributions from their bench and should do so again Friday.
Over/Under
LEAN OVER 140.5 (-110).
Princeton started to find its offensive identity again against Missouri scoring 78 points with 3 players hitting double-digit scoring and 3 more that scored 8 or 9 points. While the Under has hit in its 2 previous games, the line is lower in this game and Princeton will need to push the pace to maintain a chance for an upset.
The Over is 8-3 in the Bluejays’ last 11 neutral-site games and hit in their last game against Baylor by 17.5 points. They are an offensive-minded team that is 22nd in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency rankings.
Expect a high-scoring affair to decide who will ultimately earn a spot in the Elite 8.
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