Marquette vs. Western Kentucky: 2024 NCAA Tournament Odds & Picks
Now that the 2024 NCAA Tournament brackets have been announced, it’s time to make your sports betting picks to increase the excitement of March Madness. Let's take a look at the early odds and picks for the 2024 NCAA Tournament game: Marquette vs. Western Kentucky. And make sure to check out our 2024 NCAA Tournament Bracket Optimizer to take down your pools!
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2024 NCAA Tournament Odds & Picks: Marquette vs. Western Kentucky
Marquette 2024 NCAA Tournament Preview
Starting the Marquette March Madness discussion must begin with Tyler Kolek. The Marquette guard has been one of the most indispensable players in the country with the Golden Eagles going 3-3 since his absence. He sat out the Big Eat tournament with an oblique injury but he is needed for this Marquette team if they expect to make a deep run. Marquette may play fast but don’t underestimate their defense. Ranking inside the top 25 in defensive efficiency, the Golden Eagles allow no easy shots, forcing teams deeper into the shot clock than nearly any other team in the country with a top 25 turnover percentage while limiting free points allowed at the charity stripe.
They aren’t the best defensive rebounding squad and allow a lot of looks from deep, but compared to how Marquette’s defense looked last year, it is quite the step up. Offensively, the Golden Eagles run and gun, limiting turnovers while following Shot Quality’s method of success with a high rim-and-three rate. They are an all-around team that, when fully healthy, could make it deep in the tournament. What’s holding them back is Kolek’s health. Without their star guard, Kam Jones and Oso Ighodaro stepped up, and they competed with elite competition. But if they are playing without Kolek at 100%, that is a serious road bump on their road to Phoenix.
Marquette’s shot volume isn’t as high as one would hope with a low offensive rebounding and free throw rate and it’s also a question of if their interior defense can handle bigger teams down low. But given Shaka Smart’s tournament experience and the firepower Marquette possesses, their all-around top-tier play should bring high expectations for the Golden Eagles faithful.
Western Kentucky 2024 NCAA Tournament Preview
Behind another 20-plus win season, the Hilltoppers are back in the NCAA Tournament after taking down CUSA. Following four straight losses entering the conference tournament, Western Kentucky turned it around with three straight dubs. This will be a fun team to watch in March. Western Kentucky is the single fastest-paced team in the nation with the highest number of total field goals attempted in transition.
They don’t attempt many perimeter shots with only 40 percent of their looks coming from deep, 322nd in the country. The Hilltoppers’ defense keeps Steve Lutz’s squad with a reasonable floor as their defensive efficiency sits right around the top 100 in the league. They allow more perimeter looks than you’d hope for a potential Cinderella team. At the very least, though, this could be one of the more fun teams to watch with their, pace, depth and solid play out of Don McHenry.
2024 NCAA Tournament Predictions: Marquette vs. Western Kentucky
Marquette made it into the Big East Championship Game without Tyler Kolek. The expectation is he'll be back for the NCAA Tournament. The question is whether Kolek will ruin the Marquette flow or he'll help. As a veteran leader who almost won the Player of the Year in the conference, Kolek will likely help this team reach higher heights. Marquette and Western Kentucky run really fast offenses. Both teams also shoot above 34% from deep and better than 52% from inside the arc. We'll get a lot of possessions, but Marquette won't earn many offensive rebounds and Western Kentucky plays too fast for their own good sometimes. I'll take the Under in this one.
2024 NCAA Tournament Picks: Marquette vs. Western Kentucky
Pick: Under 158.5 (-110 on DraftKings)
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2024 NCAA Tournament Sports Betting Picks
Now that the 2024 NCAA Tournament brackets have been announced, it’s time to make your sports betting picks to increase the excitement of March Madness. Let's take a look at the early odds and picks for the 2024 NCAA Tournament
EAST REGION
- UCONN v Stetson (1v16)
- Iowa St. v South Dakota St. (2v15)
- Illinois v Morehead St. (3v14)
- Auburn v Yale (4v13)
- San Diego St. v UAB (5v12)
- BYU v Duquesne (6v11)
- Washington St. v Drake (7v10)
- Florida Atlantic v Northwestern (8v9)
MIDWEST REGION
- Montana St/Grambling St PLAY IN
- Virginia/Colorado St. PLAY IN
- Tennessee vs. Saint Peter’s (2v15)
- Creighton vs. Akron (3v14)
- Kansas vs. Samford (4v13)
- Gonzaga vs. McNeese (5v12)
- South Carolina vs. Oregon (6v11)
- Utah St. vs. TCU (8v9)
SOUTH REGION
- Boise St./Colorado PLAY IN
- Houston vs. Longwood (1v16)
- Marquette vs. Western Kentucky (2v15)
- Kentucky vs. Oakland (3v14)
- Duke vs. Vermont (4v13)
- Wisconsin vs. James Madison (5v12)
- Texas Tech vs. NC State (6v11)
- Nebraska vs. Texas A&M (8v9)
WEST REGION
- Howard/Wagner PLAY IN
- Arizona vs. Long Beach St. (2v15)
- Baylor vs. Colgate (3v14)
- Alabama vs. Charleston (4v13)
- Saint Mary’s vs. Grand Canyon (5v12)
- Clemson vs. New Mexico (6v11)
- Dayton vs. Nevada (7v10)
- Mississippi St. vs. Michigan St. (8v9)
2024 NCAA Tournament Bracket Pool Strategy & Picks
Below we provide strategy, advice, and picks to create the optimal NCAA Tournament bracket. And be sure to use our FREE bracket optimizer to build a winning men’s NCAA tournament bracket and take down your contest!