Northwestern Wildcats Vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Preview, Predictions, and Odds | March 22, 2024

Northwestern plays Florida Atlantic in the Round of 64 on Friday.

The No. 9 seed Northwestern Wildcats (21-11) are set to take on the No. 8 seed Florida Atlantic Owls (25-8) in the first game of the Friday slate. Both of these teams had stellar regular seasons but stumbled slightly to end the year. FAU looks to follow up an improbable run in the 2023 NCAA Tournament that took them to the Final Four.

Will Friday be the start of another deep tournament run for the Owls, or will Northwestern dispatch FAU and not allow history to repeat itself?

Northwestern Wildcats Vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Betting Odds

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Team Spread Total Money Line
Northwestern Wildcats +2.5
 

-110

 O 141.5 

-115

 +125
Florida Atlantic Owls -2.5 

-110

 U 141.5 

-105

 -145
**Odds Courtesy of DraftKings**

 

Northwestern Wildcats Vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Fixtures

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  • Fixture: Northwestern Wildcats Vs. Florida Atlantic Owls
  • Date and Time: March 22, 2024 @ 12:15 pm EST
  • Location: Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY

 

Apex Tale of the Tape

Northwestern Wildcats Vs. Florida Atlantic Owls
21-11 Record 25-8
73.7 Points Per Game 82.5
45.9 FG% 48.1
39.4 3PT% 35.6
31.2 Rebounds Per Game 38.1
69.0 Points Allowed Per Game 73.3
45.0 Defensive FG% 43.6
35.9 Defensive 3PT% 33.7
74.8 FT% 71.8
24.4 Defensive Rebounds Against 23.1
3-2 Last 5 W-L 4-1
Team Pace 72.1

 

67.5

 

Key Stats

Northwestern Wildcats

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Northwestern has struggled at times this season to put the ball in the basket. The Wildcats have relied on their defense to help them grind out wins. The team is led in scoring by Guard Boo Buie who averages 19.2 points per game. Buie is coming off scoring 29 points in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals. Buie also leads the team in assists. The team is paced in rebounds by Guard Brooks Barnhizer  with 7.5 boards per contest.

Florida Atlantic Owls

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FAU has one of the highest-scoring offenses in the nation at 82.5 points per game. The Owls are led in scoring by Guard Johnell Davis at 18.2 points per game. He will look to be more secure with the ball as he had 10 turnovers in FAU’s last two games. Center Vladislav Goldin will lock down the pain in Friday’s matchup. He averages over 1.5 blocks per game.

Injury Report

Northwestern Wildcats

Florida Atlantic Owls

Game Prediction

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FAU has eight returning starters from last year’s Final Four team and was the more consistent team this season. This will be a close game throughout, as the spread indicates, but the Owls will find a way to get the victory. The Wildcats opened as a slight favorite when the game was announced on Sunday, but FAU has been the favorite ever since late Sunday night.
Northwestern plays at one of the slowest paces in the nation, and that will be the only way to try and slow down what is a high-0ctane Owls offense. Florida Atlantic’s offense will only be slowed slightly, if at all, by a stellar Wildcats defense. Northwestern does not have the offensive firepower to keep up with even a slightly hampered FAU offense. While another Final Four run is tough to envision in 2024, Florida Atlantic will at least advance into the second round.

Final Pick

FAU -2.5 Under 141.5

About The Author

Justin has always loved sports. He has previously written for Sports Illustrated and 247Sports. Check out all the great content Total Apex Sports has to offer. Check us out on X @TotalApexSports and our other sites: Total Apex Sports Bets and Total Apex Fantasy Sports

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