Sharp Bettors Jumping on Tonight’s Butler-Marquette Matchup

Butler and Marquette enter tonight's matchup trending in completely different directions. Having won two straight, Butler is now 5-4 in conference and 15-7 overall. Marquette has lost two straight (granted, they played the top two teams in the Big East) to fall to 4-5 in conference, and 13-8 overall.

Will these trends continue tonight, or is Marquette due for a W?

If sharp action is any indication, it's the former.

Betting market analysis

As the home team, Marquette opened as a 3-point favorite. They also received a heavy backing from public bettors, with two out of every three bets landing on the Golden Eagles. Despite that, the line fell from -3 to -2, thanks to 63% of money on Butler, a great sharp action indicator.

On-court analysis

Our college hoops expert Jordan Majewski also sees value on the Bulldogs, noting a significant frontcourt mismatch in Butler's favor.

When these teams met less than three weeks ago, Butler's frontcourt, led by Kelan Martin, fueled the Dogs to a 94-83 victory. Martin hung 37 on Marquette that night, and fellow forward Tyler Wideman added 16 in just 20 minutes.

Expect to see more of the same tonight.

Photo by Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports