Syracuse Orangemen at Marquette Golden Eagles 2011 NCAA Basketball Preview, Odds, and Predictions: Hall of Fame head coach Jim Boeheim will lead the Syracuse Orangemen on the road to the Bradley Center to take on the Marquette Golden Eagles on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 PM ET in a Big East matchup on ESPNU. The Orange have lost 3 in a row and enter the game at 18-3, 5-3 good for 5th in the Big East while the Golden Eagles have lost 2 consecutive and come in at 13-8, 4-4 good for 8th in the conference. It’s been 5 years since Syracuse have lost 4 games in a row and the Orange are the only Big East team that Marquette has not beaten (0-4) since they joined the conference in 2005. Syracuse is known for its tough 2-3 zone. “We cannot play man-to-man. We have to play zone,” Boeheim said. “We have to work on our defense. It is our defense. Most teams have a dominant defense, and that’s the one they use. That’s our defense. We’ve got to do a better job with it.” The odds makers at JustBET have the Marquette Golden Eagles a -2 1/2 point favorite at home against the Syracuse Orangemen.
Syracuse 3 game losing skid was most recently extend with a loss 90-68 at home to Seton Hall leaving the Orange at just 5-12 ATS for the season. Forward Kris Joseph led the Orange in scoring with 17 points 6 rebounds and 3 assist while center Rick Jackson added 12 points 11 boards and 3 assist. Rounding out the double figure scorers were guards Brandon Triche and Scoop Jardine who both had 11 points and 3 rebounds each. Syracuse is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road. Vegas odds makers have the Syracuse Orangemen +1500 to win the 2011 NCAA Championship.
Marquette is coming off a home loss 76-68 to the No. 5 Connecticut Huskies after giving up a 15-0 run in the 2nd half to lose the lead. “We were so concerned on offense that we were ready to get the ball back and try to score on that end,” said forward Jimmy Butler, who had 21 points to lead the Golden Eagles against the Huskies. “We weren’t even worried about guarding them on the defensive end of the floor.” Marquette is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games and Marquette is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home. . Vegas odds makers have the over/under for the total score at 147 points combined of the Syracuse Orangemen and Marquette Golden Eagles.
I predict a Syracuse victory on the road!
Note: Rich Fritz is a Blog Writer on NSAwins.com and not a pro handicapper. For expert NFL Football Predictions against the Vegas spreads please visit the NSAwins.com homepage for top predictions today from the National Sports Advisors.