The Providence Friars (20-12) battle the No. 6 Creighton Bluejays (23-8) Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament. Tip from Madison Square Garden is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET (FS1). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook's lines around the'Providence vs. Creighton odds, and make our expert'college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
The 7th-seeded Friars beat No. 10 Georgetown 74-56 on Wednesday in the 1st round of the Big East Tournament, covering as a 9.5-point favorite while the Under (140.5) cashed. Providence limped to the finish line of the regular season losing 3 of their last 4. They will need a big performance from 1st-team All-Big East G Devin Carter to win this game. He scored 28 and 25 points in the 2 games against Creighton this season.
The 2nd-seeded Bluejays come into the tournament after a regular season-ending 69-67 win on Saturday over the Villanova Wildcats in Philadelphia. They barely covered the spread as a 1.5-point favorite and the Under (137.5) cashed. First-team All-Big East G Baylor Scheierman scored 18 points, with 8 rebounds and 6 assists. The Bluejays have been in the Big East title game 2 of the last 3 seasons, but lost both times.
The teams split their season series with both winning at home. Creighton won 69-60 on Jan. 6 and Providence won 91-87 on Feb. 7. The Friars covered the spread in both matchups.