Marshall vs. Wichita State Prediction
Will the No. 13 Marshall and No. 4 Wichita State matchup turn into a shootout Friday afternoon when the two teams meet in the opening round of the March Madness tournament?
Game Snapshot
(889) Marshall vs. (890) Wichita State
Friday, March 16, 2018
TV: TNT, 1:30 p.m. ET
CURRENT ODDS
According to oddsmakers from online sports book YouWager, the Shockers are 11.5-point favorites to knock off the Thundering Herd, while the over/under currently sits at 165.5 at the majority of online sportsbooks.
LINE MOVEMENT
Wichita State opened as 12-point favorites but the line has been bet down to 11.5 at the majority of online sportsbooks. As for the total, it opened at 167.5 but was bet down two full points to 165.5.
Bet Tonight’s College Hoops Action
PUBLIC BETTING INFORMATION
As of Friday morning, 58% of betting tickets wagered at online sportsbooks are on the Thundering Herd to cover the point spread this afternoon. Meanwhile, 54% of the betting tickets are on the over.
KEY INJURIES
None. Both Marshall and Wichita State are relatively healthy, as neither team has a player listed on their injury report.
BETTING STRATEGIES
I don’t know why the total has been bet down two full points but the line movement favors my pick because I love the over. For Marshall, Jon Elmore leads Conference USA in points per game at 22.8 and is the fourth-leaing scorer among the NCAA Tournament field. Elmore is the only Conference USA player averaging 20 points and five assists per game. Marshall plays fast and relies on 3-pointers. When the Thundering Herd hit, they can run with a lot of teams.
As for Wichita State, the shockers rank sixth in Division I in adjusted offensive efficiency (120.9) according to ESPN Stats & Info. They were at the top of their conference in several offensive categories, including PPG, Efficiency, FG percentage and Paint PPG. Assuming Landry Shamet and Austin Reaves are on their games, this should be a shootout.
MARCH MADNESS COLLEGE BASKETBALL PREDICTION: MARSHALL/WICHITA STATE OVER 165.5