Pitt vs Xavier Odds, Lines & Picks for March Madness Second Round

• Xavier is a five-point favorite over Pitt in an NCAA Midwest Region second-round game on Sunday in Greensboro, N.C.
• Xavier has won six of its last seven games
• A look at the Pitt vs Xavier odds and predictions can be found below for the March 19 second-round March Madness game

The #11 Pitt Panthers will try to make it three NCAA Tournament wins in a week when it faces the #3 Xavier Musketeers in a Midwest Region second-round game at 12:10 ET, Sunday, at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC.

Pitt (24-11, 24-10-1 ATS) has won three of its last four, including beating Mississippi State 60-59 in a First Four game Tuesday and Iowa State 59-41 in the first round on Friday.

Xavier (26-9, 19-16 ATS) averted a major upset in the first by rallying past Kennesaw State 72-67 for its sixth win in the last seven games.

CBS will televise the game.

Pitt vs Xavier Odds

Xavier is a five-point favorite over Pitt and a -225 choice on the moneyline in the college basketball odds, giving it a 69.23% implied win probability. The Musketeers are listed at +5500 in the NCAA Tournament championship odds and the Panthers at +15000.

The winner advances in the March Madness bracket to play Texas (27-8) or Penn State (23-13) in the regional semifinals next Friday at Kansas City, Mo.

Odds as of March 18th at Barstool Sportsbook. See full list of March Madness betting apps.

Pitt Has Lockdown Defensive Day

Pitt had a defensive performance for the ages in its win over Iowa State.

The Cyclones shot just 23.3% (14 of 60). They also hit just 2 of 21 (9.5%) attempts from three-point range.

Meanwhile, the Panthers made just 14 of their 41 field-goal attempts for 34.1%. However, Pitt burst to a 22-2 lead and was never threatened despite committing 15 turnovers.

Senior guard Nelly Cummings led Pitt with 13 points and three assists. Senior guard Jamarius Burton had 11 points and three assists and senior guard Greg Elliott chipped in with 10 points and eight rebounds.

Nelly Cummings NCAA Tournament History:

Vs. Arkansas (w/ Colgate): 14 points, 3 REB, 4 AST, 4-8 3FG

Vs. Wisconsin (w/ Colgate): 20 points, 6 REB, 6 AST, 2-6 3FG

Vs. Mississippi State: 15 points, 3 REB, 4 AST, 2-4 3FG

Vs. Iowa State: 13 points, 1 REB, 3 AST, 2-5 3FG, pic.twitter.com/yK9e4MBOub

— George Michalowski (@MichalowskiCBB) March 17, 2023

Junior forward Blake Hinson, Pitt’s leading scorer, was held to five points on 1-of-8 shooting. He is averaging 15.2 points and 6.1 rebounds a game.

Burton has averages of 15.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists. Cummings is scoring 11.2 points and dishing 4.7 assists a game, ranking fourth in the ACC in helpers. Elliott is scoring 10.5 points a game.

Sophomore center Federiko Federiko is third in the conference in blocked shots with a 1.7 average. He returned in the win against Iowa State and played 11 minutes after sitting Pitt’s victory over Mississippi State.

Pitt is 38^th in Division I in free throw shooting with a percentage of 76.2.

Xavier Averts Major Upset

Xavier needed a late burst to overcome Kennesaw State’s upset bid.

The Musketeers went on a 24-6 game-ending run to wipe out a 61-48 deficit with 9:58 remaining. Xavier held Kennesaw State to 2 of 15 from the floor in that span.

Senior forward Jerome Hunter scored a career-high 24 points to lead Xavier as he was 8 of 11 from the field and 8 of 8 from the free throw line. Hunter’s previous scoring best this season was 15 points.

Jerome Hunter went up and GOT IT ✈️#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/9btaCy155V

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 17, 2023

Senior guard Souley Boum added 17 points and five rebounds. Junior guard Colby Jones chipped in with 12 points, six rebounds and four assists.

In addition to having a key block in the final minute, senior forward Jack Nunge stuffed the stat sheet. He finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds for his 11^th double-double of the season along with three assists, two steals and two blocked shots.

Boum is second in the Big East in scoring at 16.5 points a game. He is also averaging 4.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists.

Jones has averages of 15.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists. Nunge is fifth in the Big East with 7.9 points a game while also averaging 14.0 points and 2.1 assists. Senior guard Adam Kunkel is scoring 10.4 points and dishing 3.1 assists a game.

Xavier is fourth in the nation in three-point shooting (39.5%) despite going just 2 of 12 (16.7%) against Kennesaw State. The Musketeers are also seventh in overall field goal percentage (49.4) and 12^th in scoring (81.4).

Conversely, Xavier is 310^th in three-point field goal defense (35.9).

Pitt vs Xavier Prediction

After barely getting into the field of 68, Pitt has proven it belongs in the tournament. Look for the Panthers to keep this one close.

Pick: Pitt +5 (-110)

Season record: 34-30 (+1.0 units) ATS, 4-10 (-5.5 units) ML

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