The 7th seed Michigan State Spartans (20-12) and No. 2 Marquette Golden Eagles (29-6) tangles Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The East Region game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus is scheduled to tip at 5:15 PM ET (CBS). Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around Michigan State vs. Marquette odds as we do our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.

Michigan State covered as a 2.5-point favorite in a 72-62 win over USC on Friday to advance. The Spartans are 3-1 shooting 45.6% from distance over their last 4 games. It’s a big improvement on their already elite 3-point shooting which ranks 4th in the nation at 39.52%.

Marquette is No. 4 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. The Golden Eagles beat Vermont 78-61 on Friday comfortably covered as 10-point favorites. Marquette is 10-0 since Feb. 11, including wins over St. John’s, Connecticut and Xavier en route to capturing the Big East Conference championship.

MSU and MU meet on the hardwood for the first time since 2014.

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Michigan State vs. Marquette odds

Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access the USA TODAY Sports Score and Sports Betting Odds hub for a complete list. Lines last updated Saturday at 11:22 a.m. ET.

• Money line: Michigan State +125 (bet $100 to win $125) | Marquette -145 (bet $145 to win $100)
• Against the spread (ATS): Michigan State +2.5 (-108) | Marquette -2.5 (-112)
• Over/Under (O/U): 141.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)

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Michigan State vs. Marquette picks and predictions

Prediction

Michigan State 74, Marquette 71

Moneyline

Michigan State has played a much tougher schedule and is the better perimeter team on offense and defense. Marquette likes to score a lot of points at the rim and from close, but MSU defends pretty well down low.

Fix this game to be closer to an even exchange. BACK THE SPARTANS (+125).

Against the spread

The Eagles are used to a faster style of play in the Big East. Look for MSU’s slow tempo to affect MU’s rhythm.

We can expect shooting regression to hurt MU’s offense and help MSU’s defense.

Consider playing on a partial device MICHIGAN STATE +2.5 (-108).

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Over under

Michigan State has scored 72 or more points in 6 of its last 7 games. The Spartans are perhaps more dangerous than what is commonly believed.

SEND for now, but Over would be worth a part-unit action if the total dipped to 140.5.

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