If all of the March Madness action over the weekend hasn’t quenched your thirst for college basketball, the NIT has got you covered. On Tuesday night, the NIT Quarterfinals will start when the Marquette Golden Eagles host the Penn State Nittany Lions.
Although Marquette typically plays in the home of the Milwaukee Bucks, the BMO Harris Bradley Center, the Golden Eagles have decided to play their home games in a more quaint environment for the NIT. That has worked out well as students have packed the 3,700-seat Al McGuire Center, making opponents noticeably uncomfortable as the sound reverberates throughout the smaller arena.
This war on the floor will go down Tuesday, March 20, 2018, at 7 p.m. ET at the Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The game will be televised live on ESPN. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game throughout the NIT.
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After being left at home by the Selection Committee, Marquette is out to prove that it should have been chosen for the NCAA Tournament. The Golden Eagles didn’t cover in their first game of the NIT, only beating Harvard by seven, but they did cover on Sunday night against Oregon. Marquette sank 10 threes in the first half to race out to a bid advantage, and then held on at the end to get the cover per the CBB betting odds.
Penn State was not able to cover the spread in its first NIT game, beating Temple by only six points, but the Nittany Lions were able to score a nice upset over Notre Dame. Penn State was a 5.5-point underdog heading into that one and won by double digits thanks to an impressive job of getting to the line.
It’s important to remember that there are two big rule changes and two small rule changes for the NIT. First, games will be played in four 10-minute quarters instead of two 20-minute halves. Second, the three-point line will be pushed out by about 20 inches to match the one used in international competition. Third, the free throw lane will be widened by four feet, matching the width used in the NBA. Finally, the shot chock will reset to only 20 seconds as opposed to the usual 30 seconds, after an offensive rebound.
Key Stat
The rule modifications being experimented with at the NIT were supposed to make three-point shooting more difficult, but that hasn’t stopped the Golden Eagles. Marquette has been one of the nation’s best from downtown this season, and went from hitting 41.5 percent in the regular season to 45 percent through two NIT games.
The Golden Eagles top three scorers have all been lights out from downtown this season. Markus Howard and Andrew Rowsey are each hitting better than 40 percent from downtown this season, while Sam Hauser is 50 percent from distance.
Player to Watch
Penn State’s Tony Carr is who Marquette will have to stop in order to make it to the NIT Semifinals in Madison Square Garden. Carr has been solid this year, but he has struggled in each of the Nittany Lions’ last three games. He is just 11-45 during that stretch.
Free NIT Quarterfinals ATS Picks
Both of these teams are going to have tired legs coming into this one. That’s just the nature of the NIT during the regional stage, as teams are flying across the country on just a day or two’s rest.
In the end, look for Marquette to pull this one out. The Golden Eagles are playing at home and have shown no signs of slowing down despite the rule changes. Marquette shouldn’t be too big of a favorite in this one, so you shouldn’t have to lay many points.
NIT Quarterfinals Betting Odds: Marquette 77, Penn State 70
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