The Butler Bulldogs and the LSU Tigers will both be gunning for a victory on Thursday when they meet at Greensboro Coliseum in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Oddsmakers currently have the Tigers listed as 2½-point favorites versus the Bulldogs, while the game's total has not yet been posted.
Shelvin Mack led Butler with 18 points and nine boards in its 57-54 loss to Cleveland State in the Horizon League championship last Tuesday night.
Cleveland State cashed as 5.5-point underdogs as the teams played under the 118-point total set by sportsbooks.
Tasmin Mitchell was the top scorer for LSU with 15 points in a 67-57 loss to Mississippi State in the semifinals of the SEC Conference tournament on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers failed to cover the 3.5-point spread, while the final score played UNDER the posted total of 140.
Team records:
Butler: 26-5 SU, 15-13-1 ATS
LSU: 26-7 SU, 13-12 ATS
Butler most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 8-2
After playing Cleveland State are 8-2
After a loss are 9-1<\/p>\n
LSU most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
After playing Mississippi State are 5-5
After a loss are 6-4
A few trends to consider:
Butler is 18-4 SU in its last 22 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Butler's last 11 games
Butler is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games
LSU is 11-3 SU in its last 14 games
LSU is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games<\/p>\n