Picks, predictions for Butler vs. St. John’s in Big East Tournament First Round

The Big East Tournament kicks off with Butler facing St. John’s in the first round on Wednesday, March 8. Tip-off is set for 3:00 p.m. ET from Madison Square Garden and will be available to watch on FS1. Let’s take a look at the odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook and make some picks.

Butler vs. St. John’s odds in Big East First Round

Spread: St. John’s -5.5
Over/Under: 145.5
Moneyline: STJ -230, Butler +195

Butler (14-17, 6-14 Big East) comes into this tournament under .500 overall and in conference play, and to make matters worse they head into Wednesday’s matchup saddled with injuries. The Bulldogs struggled to find the basket in the regular season, averaging just 65.3 PPG which ranks 329th in the nation as Jayden Tayler leads the Bulldogs in scoring with 13.2 PPG. Not far behind is Manny Bates who averages 11.9 PPG and 5.5 APG, but he joins D.J. Hughes and Ali Ali who are all listed as questionable ahead of Wednesday’s bout.

St. John’s (17-14, 7-13 Big East) enters the tournament as winners of three in their last six games, but despite losing to Marquette on Saturday one could argue that it was about as good of a loss as one team could hope for. The Red Storm nearly knocked off the number one seed but fell by a score of 96-94. Joel Soriano leads St. John’s this season with 15.2 PPG while David Jones averages 13.1 PPG respectively.

The Pick: St. John’s -5.5

These two foes split the regular season series with each team picking up a victory at home, but in this Big East first-round matchup one could argue that the Red Storm has the unofficial “home-court advantage” in playing at MSG. Aside from having the home-court crowd behind them, St. John’s should benefit greatly in being the overall healthier team in this head-to-head, as the Bulldogs’ trio of injuries should keep them shorthanded on the offensive end. Take the Red Storm to cover and advance in the Big East tournament.