Pittsburgh Panthers at Villanova Wildcats

Betting Odds

Point Spread: Villanova Wildcats( -3)
Game Total Line: (139)
(wagering lines available at 5Dimes)

The Pittsburgh Panthers will be looking to pull off a tough win on the road when they invade The Pavilion this Saturday night to take on the Villanova Wildcats in a huge Big East showdown of top 10 teams. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. (ET) and the game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.

Pittsburgh is currently 22-2 straight-up overall (10-9 against the spread) and remains on top in the Big East with a conference record of 10-1 SU. The Panthers are coming off a hard-fought 71-66 victory over bitter rival West Virginia on the road this past Monday in a game that closed as a ‘pick’. This followed a 71-59 win over Cincinnati as a nine-point home favorite last Saturday.

The Panthers suffered a huge blow to their lineup when their leading scorer, junior guard Ashton Gibbs went down with a knee injury that will sideline him for another week or so. Gibbs is averaging 16.3 points a game. Look for senior guard Brad Wanamaker, who is the team’s second leading scorer with 12.3 points a game and senior forward Gilbert Brown, who is averaging 11.4 points to try and pick up the slack in his absence.

Pittsburgh is averaging 77.4 points a game and is ranked fifth in the nation in rebounds with 42. It is shooting 47.5 percent from the field and 39.3 percent from three-point range, but has struggled a bit from the foul-line; converting on just 66.7 percent of its attempts.

Villanova will be looking to bounce back from a last minute collapse in a stunning 77-76 loss to Rutgers this past Wednesday as a 5 ½-point road favorite. This loss dropped the Wildcats to 19-5 SU on the year and 11-9-1 ATS. They are currently in fourth-place in the Big East at 7-4 SU.

Seniors Corey Fisher and Corey Stokes continue to provide the bulk of the offense for Villanova. Fisher leads the team with an average of 16 points and 5.3 assists, while Stokes is averaging 14.6 points and 3.4 rebounds. A third senior, Antonio Pena rounds out this veteran lineup with 10.5 points and a team-high 7.4 rebounds a game.

The Wildcats are shooting 45.2 from the field and averaging 76 points a game. They are hitting 35.8 percent of their three-point shots and 77.3 percent of their foul-shots. Villanova is ranked 48th in the country in rebounds with an average of 38 per game.

Pittsburgh is 3-2 ATS in its last five road games and 4-2 in its last six games overall. The total has stayed ‘under’ in three of its last five games.

Villanova is 4-2 ATS in its last six games at home but just 1-4 ATS in its last five games overall. The total has stayed ‘under’ in four of its last five games.

Head-to-head, the Wildcats have won three of the last five games SU, but the Panthers are 3-2 ATS. The total has stayed ‘under’ in seven of the last eight meetings. When these two teams played last season, Pitt won 70-65 as a two-point home underdog.

Against the Spread Game Pick

This time around the Wildcats opened as a 3 point favorite, but the line could climb up a bit with Gibbs out of the lineup. Villanova remains a solid pick as it will be able to exploit this loss on its home court to come away with a convincing win.
Take the Wildcats -3 at 5Dimes and get reduced juice on game day!