March Madness: Creighton vs. Ohio seed odds, picks and prediction

The Creighton Bluejays (21-8) take on the Ohio Bobcats (17-7) in a West Region second-round game Monday. The fifth-seeded Bluejays and 13th-seeded Bobcats will tip off at 6:10 p.m. ET at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Below, we analyze the Creighton-Ohio odds and lines, with March Madness NCAA Tournament picks and predictions.

Creighton edged UC Santa Barbara 63-62 in the first round Saturday. The Bluejays held the Gauchos to 38.6% shooting. It was the sixth time in their last 10 games the Bluejays held an opponent under 40%. As is its m.o., Creighton struggled on the offensive boards and in getting to the foul line. The Bluejays generally make up for those shortcomings by making shots and playing good defense.

Ohio upset fourth-seeded Virginia 62-58 in the first round Saturday. The Bobcats flipped a double-digit margin in the second half to grind out the win. OU is an average-to-fast-tempo, offense-first team and is playing its best basketball as the moment. The Bobcats are 10-1 with improving analytic measures over their last 11 games.

Creighton vs. Ohio:Odds, spread andlines

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports' betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Sunday at 10:34 p.m. ET.

• Money line : Creighton -250 (bet $250 to win $100) | Ohio +195 (bet $100 to win $195)
• Against the spread/ATS : Creighton -5.5 (-110) | Ohio +5.5 (-110)
• Over/Under : 148.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)

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Creighton vs. Ohio: Odds, lines, predictions and picks

Prediction

Creighton 76, Ohio 69

Money line (ML)

The question is which Ohio team will show up. The one that coughed up a 51.6% field-goal mark in an eight-game stretch in December-January or the one that featured an improving offense and caught a couple teams - Buffalo in the MAC Tournament final and Virginia Saturday - on bad shooting days?

Peg the latter as the being what we've seen from Ohio in the last week. That's not to say the late-season trend lines aren't impressive, but the Bluejays have the superior defense, especially in defending the 3-ball.

TAKE CREIGHTON -250.

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Against the spread (ATS)

An OU team with more rebounding skill and an ability to get to the charity stripe would be more of a worthy underdog. Creighton, as inconsistent as it has been, is a SOLID PLAY AT -5.5 (-110).

Over/Under (O/U)

The Under is 4-0 in Creighton's last four NCAA Tournament games as a favorite. It's 3-0-1 in CU's last four games against .600 teams.

That's the lean here. Take UNDER 148.5. for a HALF-UNIT play.

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