Sweet 16: Marquette vs North Carolina | Prediction & Pick

Marquette poised to take Big East’s remaining team out of Contention

The Marquette Golden Eagles earned a No.11 seed in the East Region of the 2011 NCAA Tournament and have surprised even the most creative bracketologists earning a spot in the Sweet 16 and a chance to play in their first Regional Seminal since 2003 against second-seed North Carolina on Friday in Newark.

vs.

#11 Marquette (22-14, 9-9 Big East) vs. #2 North Carolina (27-7, 14-2 ACC)

Date/Time: Friday, March 25, 7:15 PM EST
Venue: Prudential Center in Newark, NJ.
Broadcast: CBS

Money Line: Marquette +175, North Carolina -210
Spread: North Carolina -4 ½
Over/Under: 149 ½

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After holding Xavier’s Tu Holloway to 1-of-9 shooting in a 66-55 shocker, the Golden Eagles stunned No. 3 seed and Big East rival Syracuse in the round of 32, leaving the Tar Heels as last team standing out of the 11 Big East schools that made it into this year’s NCAA tournament.

It’s was quite the miracle as Marquette was able to upset Syracuse despite allowing the Orange to shoot 55 percent from the floor, while making just 41 percent of their shots from the field. The Golden Eagles won the contest by breaking down the Orange’s matchup-zone and attacking inside, drawing enough fouls that eventually led to 19 of 23 attempts from the foul line.

Meanwhile, North Carolina followed up their 102-87 win over Long Island with an 86-83 victory over Washington in just their first appearance at the Big Dance after winning it all in 2009.

As impressive as the Heels have been, their defensive has been atrocious. They were forced to rally from deficits of 11 points in the first half and five in the second against the Huskies.

Freshmen Harrison Barnes had 22 points and Kendall Marshall had 14 assists to go along with 13 points and five boards in the win. However, they must do a better job on the defensive end against Marquette.

The Golden Eagles is a squad that averages 76 points per contest. Jimmy Butler paces the scoring at 16.0 points per game, followed closely by Darius Johnson-Odom (15.9 PPG), both of whom led in scoring in the team’s shocker over Xavier.  Odom also posted a team-high 17 points against Syracuse.

The team has been making good shot selections, taking away their opponents transition game, and that has resulted in fewer points allowed on the break.

The Golden Eagles are no strangers to this tournament. They are making a sixth straight trip to the tournament, and they have been in this tournament seven times in the last ten years.

The odds makers have the North Carolina Tar Heels as a -4.5 point favorite with an over/under of 149.5.

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Prediction: Marquette is once again listed as slim underdogs in this one, but I expect another upset here if they can exercise the same discipline they have in their first two tournament wins against a young North Carolina team prone to defensive breakdowns.

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