Louisville vs Creighton Prediction, Preview & Odds: NCAA Tournament First Round

Originally posted on College Football News
By Pete Fiutak | Last updated Mar 18, 2025 5:44 PM ET

It’s a fun way to open up the NCAA Tournament - the real 64-team version.

Louisville has the right to come into this with an attitude - it's underseeded. It went 22-1 including two ACC Tournament wins before running into Duke. There might not be a ton of amazing wins, but this bunch knows how to battle.

Creighton had a rockier run over the finishing kick, but it got hot in early March before losing to St. John’s in the Big East Tournament.

This is one to watch - yes, the winner of this could absolutely beat Auburn on Saturday.

Louisville vs Creighton Game Preview

Louisville vs Creighton How To Watch

Date: Thursday, March 20
Venue: Rupp Arena, Lexington, KY
Time: 12:15 pm ET
TV: CBS
Teams: (9) Creighton (24-10), (8) Louisville (27-7)
Region: South

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Why Creighton Will Win

As always, the Bluejays bring a ton of size, and they take advantage of it by owning the glass.

Don’t miss against this bunch; they clean up every defensive rebound. They shoot well overall, take and make plenty of threes, and they lead the nation in fewest fouls.

No, there isn’t any scoring punch coming from the bench, but Louisville isn’t all that deep, either.

Why Louisville Will Win

Turnovers are a slight problem for the Cardinals, but that’s fine - Creighton doesn’t do a thing to take the ball away.

As good as the Bluejays are defensively, they don’t force a bunch of mistakes.

Louisville should be able to move the ball around well, it takes a ton of threes, and there’s just enough size to battle with the Creighton bulk up front.

Few teams seeded 8 on down are better at forcing the tempo. The Cardinals will make Creighton play their style, but …

Louisville vs Creighton: Who Will Win?

Creighton has no problem playing a half-court game that comes down to the extra pass and good scoring opportunities.

Be stunned if there are any transition points, but that doesn’t mean the scoring will stall with both teams bombing from the outside.

Creighton is an unbeaten 16-0 when keeping teams under 70 points, but Louisville has only been held under that five times this year.

The Cardinals are 25-1 when scoring more than 70. They’ll score more than 70.

Louisville vs Creighton Prediction, Betting Lines

Prediction: Louisville 75, Creighton 72
Louisville vs Creighton Betting Lines
BetMGM Line: Louisville -2.5, o/u: 145.5
DraftKings Line: Louisville -2.5, o/u: 144.5
FanDuel Line: Louisville -2.5, o/u: 145.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 3

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