How and what to watch for Butler vs. No. 14 Creighton

The Creighton Bluejays will go into Saturday’s game against the Butler Bulldogs without their head coach Greg McDermott, who has been suspended indefinitely by the school for racially insensitive comments after a loss to Xavier last weekend.

Creighton (17-7, 13-6 Big East) will be coached by assistant Al Huss for this game. The Bluejays had a four-game winning streak going before losing each of their last two games including Wednesday’s 72-60 road loss to the Villanova Wildcats. Creighton will check in at No. 18 in the latest KenPom ratings, and their adjusted offensive efficiency ranks No. 12 in the country. Five players average at least 10 points for Creighton, led by junior guard Marcus Zegarowski’s 14.7 points per game.

Butler (9-13, 8-11 Big East) will look to close out their regular season strong. The Bulldogs lost three in a row in mid-February, but beat a pair of good teams at home heading into this one including a 73-61 victory over Villanova on Sunday. Butler struggles on the offensive end of the floor at No. 185 in adjusted efficiency. Freshman guard Chuck Harris leads the team with 12 points per game.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

You can watch Butler vs. No. 14 Creighton on Saturday, March 6 at 4 p.m. ET on FOX. The game will be available via live stream at FOX.com/live. If you don’t have a cable login to access FOX for live stream, you can get a free trial from YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, AT&T TV Now, FuboTV, or Sling TV to stream the game.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Point spread: Creighton -12.5
Point Total: 134
Money line: Creighton -1000, Butler +600

• Butler is 1-8 straight up in their last nine road games.
• Butler is 4-2 against the spread and straight up in their last six games against Creighton.
• The total went over in four of Butler’s last six games, and the under hit in four of Creighton’s last six.
• Creighton is 4-8 against the spread in their last 12 games.

The Best Bet

There’s a serious question of how much will the McDermott situation affect the Bluejays as they finish off the regular season by ending a two-game losing skid. Meanwhile, Butler has nothing to lose here and has the confidence of beating this Creighton squad once in overtime earlier in the year.

Expect the Bulldogs to continue their trend of covering against a distracted Creighton.

Pick: Butler +12.5

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL). Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ/WV/PA/MI), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-888-532-3500 (VA) or call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN). 21+ (18+ NH). CO/IL/IN/IA/NH/NJ/PA/TN/VA/WV/MI only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.