On Monday, March will arrive. And for those teams still scrambling to make sure they play meaningful basketball in three weeks, the moment becomes critical.
In the Big East, one of those teams with some work to do to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament is Xavier, who sits at 12-5 but needs some quality wins on the resume. They can try to pick one up Saturday (5 p.m., FOX) when Creighton- who is 17-5 and could end up as a Top 4 seed in a region- arrives at Cintas Center in Cincinnati for a critical contest.
And you could win $1,000 with FOX’s Super 6. Just pick the correct answer to the following six questions and you could take home the grand prize. It’s easy, fun and free to play. Just download the Super 6 app on your phone or tablet device.
Here’s the questions and how to look at it.
Which team will have the most bench points?
Creighton or Xavier
In the first game between the two teams- a 66-61 win for the Bluejays on December 23- it was Xavier who had the edge coming off the bench by a slim 22-21 margin. The Musketeers main reserve off the bench is Colby Jones, who had 7.8 points a game average. Ryan Kalbrenner leads the bench staff for the Bluejays at 6.6.
What will Creighton’s Field Goal percentage be for the game?
0-35, 36-40, 41-45, 46-50, 51-55 and 56%+
In the first game between the two in December, the Bluejays shot 35.5 percent overall – a steep decline from the 48.7 percent that Creighton has averaged from the floor this season. Xavier is holding opponents to 40.8 percent shooting per game.
What will Xavier’s Field Goal percentage be for the game?
0-35, 36-40, 41-45, 46-50, 51-55 and 56%+
Xavier is averaging 46.5 percent shooting from the floor in their first 17 games. However, they shot 35.3 percent in the first game against Creighton back on Dec. 23. Creighton is holding teams down to 39.9 percent shooting from the floor.
How many points will Creighton score in the game?
0-65, 66-70, 71-75, 76-80, 81-85, 86+ points
Creighton is averaging 79.0 points a game so far in 22 contests. In winning seven of the last eight games, they have averaged 75.5 points a game and now have five players averaging in double figures.
How many points will Xavier score in the game?
0-65, 66-70, 71-75, 76-80, 81-85, 86+ points
The Musketeers have been averaging 76.5 points a game this season. However, they have been under that mark now eight of its last nine games going back to that first game against Creighton in Omaha. That could be a result of two different extended breaks- a 20-day one from Jan. 10-30 and a 14-day break from Jan. 31 to Feb. 13.
Pick the team to win and by how many points
Creighton by 1-3, Creighton by 4-7, Creighton by 8+, Xavier by 1-3, Xavier by 4-7, Xavier by 8+
There’s a ton of factors pointing towards Xavier. First, it’s desperation for the Musketeers, who suffered a bad road loss to Providence on Wednesday night to slip further onto a soft bubble. The second is the emotion of Senior Day- even in an empty building, teams tend to play tougher for the final home game. Still, Creighton is peaking at the right time as witnessed by the 16 point win over No. 5 Villanova two weeks ago. If Xavier pulls it out, it would have earned it.
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