Marquette battles Villanova in Wednesday’s top matchup.

If the Wildcats are going to make a move, they must make it soon. That may be easier said than done since the Golden Eagles have been great all season long. I break down five of the best betting matchups for Wednesday's slate below. Enjoy.

[Wednesday, Feb 27]

#9 Marquette Eagles at #16 Villanova Wildcats -5.0 (9:00pm ET)

Although still ranked in the Top-20, Villanova has been playing its worst basketball of the season. The Wildcats enter their matchup with Marquette losers of 3 straight both against the spread and on the moneyline. Nova was favored in all 3 losses.

The Wildcats’ form is in stark contrast to Marquette’s. The Golden Eagles haven’t lost straight up since a 69-70 game to St. John’s back on Feb. 5. Since the loss, Marquette’s turned it on, going 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS in their last 4 matchups.

The Golden Eagles should cover based on the trends. They’re 8-2 ATS in their last 10 versus the Big East. 13-3 ATS in their last 16 following a straight up win, 6-1 ATS in their last 7 following an against the spread win, and 6-0 ATS in their last 6 on the road.

Villanova can’t buy a win, which is why Marquette’s not only a good pick against the spread, they’re also a good pick straight up. Going with the Golden Eagles on the moneyline. Villanova is ripe for the picking (except don't pick them).

NCAAB Free Pick: Marquette +175

#20 Maryland Terrapins -1.5 at Penn State Nittany Lions (6:30pm ET)

It would be nice and easy if we could just back Maryland against the spread and not even consider lowly Penn State. That’s impossible, though, because the Nittany Lions upset Michigan at home a couple of weeks ago. In fact, the Nittany Lions are 2-1 SU and ATS in their last 3 home games. The lone loss against the spread was in overtime to Purdue.

Maryland is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall, but Penn State is 5-0-1 ATS in their last 6 games overall. Nittany Lions should cover and steal the victory.

NCAAB Free Pick - Penn State +1.5

#6 Houston Cougars -14.5 at East Carolina Pirates (7:00pm ET)

Houston’s getting no love as a possible 1-seed even though they’ve only lost a single game this season, 69-73 back on Jan. 9 to Temple. Since the loss, the Cougars have gone 11-0 SU and 8-3 ATS.

One of the victories against the spread and on the moneyline was against East Carolina. The Cougars dominated the Pirates 94-50. Houston should easily cover on Wednesday night no matter what the spread is.

NCAAB Free Pick - Houston -14.5

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at #2 Virginia Cavaliers -18.0 (7:00pm ET)

Since the early February loss to Duke, the Cavaliers have gone back to winning games straight up and against the spread. UVA is 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS in their last 4. They face a Georgia Tech team that they should dominate, but that is far from certain especially with a massive number looming over the matchup.

The Yellow Jackets are an awful 1-8 SU in their last 9. However, Georgia Tech is 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games following an against the spread loss, and 7-3 ATS in their last 10 on the road. Georgia Tech wins against the spread while UVA wins straight up.

NCAAB Free Pick: Georgia Tech +18.0

#7 Tennessee Volunteers -4.5 at Ole Miss Rebels (7:00pm ET)

Although still ranked in the top-10, Tennessee hasn’t been nearly the lock against the spread in recent games as they were when the season first started. The Volunteers are only 1-5 ATS in their last 6. They’ve actually lost 2-of-3 straight up although to be fair the losses were to LSU and Kentucky.

Ole Miss is in somewhat better form, going 5-1 SU and 3-3 ATS in their last 6. The trends point to Ole Miss covering. They’re 12-3 ATS in their last 15 games following a straight up win, and 20-8 ATS in their last 28 games while Tennessee is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games versus a team with a winning straight up record.

NCAAB Free Pick: Ole Miss +4.5