Record 72-64
Marquette +4.5 vs. Syracuse
The Golden Eagles finally didn't need luck as they dominated Miami to get to this Elite 8 matchup with Syracuse. These two teams played back on February 25th with Marquette winning 74-71. Multiple things stuck out from this matchup and we'll start with Davante Gardner who had 26 points and eight rebounds in the win. He made 12 free throws which was five more then the Orange took overall. Marquette got 35 FT's in the game and still nearly lost. They struggled mightily from long range hitting just 5-of-21 and slightly outrebounded the Orange 30-26. CJ Fair led Syracuse with 20 points while James Southerland added 15. The Golden Eagles will not be afraid of the Orange zone and should be able to get open looks. Other factors to consider are that this should be a predominately Syracuse crowd which will help them out. These two teams just have a knack for playing close games so we'll take the underdog although it's a concern that they are 16 for 58 from long range in their last three meetings.