Butler Bulldogs vs Villanova Wildcats Prediction, 2/25/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Butler Bulldogs vs Villanova Wildcats

Date: Wednesday, February 25, 2026

Location: Finneran Pavilion in Villanova, PA

TV: ESPN+

The Villanova Wildcats (21-6) are hosting the Butler Bulldogs (15-13) at Finneran Pavilion on Wednesday.

The Butler Bulldogs took the court against Xavier and notched a win by a score of 80-75 in their last contest. Butler ended the contest with a 47.3% FG percentage (26 out of 55) and converted 3 of their 11 shots from beyond the arc. From the charity stripe, the Bulldogs buried 25 of 33 attempts for a percentage of 75.8%. Regarding grabbing boards, they collected 31 with 5 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 14 assists in this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 6 turnovers and getting 2 steals. When discussing defense, Butler allowed the other team to shoot 44.4% from the field on 28 out of 63 shooting. Xavier recorded 13 assists and had 3 steals in this contest. Furthermore, Xavier had 30 boards (7 offensive, 23 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Xavier shot 81.8% at the charity stripe by making 9 of their 11 tries. They converted 10 out of their 32 tries from beyond the arc. In reference to personal fouls, the Bulldogs ended up with 8 while Xavier had 21 personal fouls.

Michael Ajayi is one guy who came through in the matchup. He finished shooting 52.4% from the floor and recorded 2 dimes. He played 35 mins played and collected 9 boards. He accounted for 24 points on 11 out of 21 shooting.

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Butler will enter this contest with a win-loss record of 15-13 this season. They average 80.2 points per contest (92nd in Division 1) while hitting 45.4% from the field. The Bulldogs are hitting 33.7% on shots from beyond the arc (202 of 600) and 70.8% from the free throw line. As a unit, Butler is grabbing 37.7 boards per game and is sitting with 441 assists on the campaign, which has them ranked 70th in the country in terms of passing the ball. They turn it over 11.0 times per contest and as a team they commit 15.4 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on defense, the Bulldogs are forcing their opponents into 10.9 turnovers per contest while drawing 20.8 fouls. They are giving up 33.0% on three-point shots while they are 273rd in college hoops in points per game allowed (77.2). The Bulldogs defensively are allowing a field goal percentage of 45.7% (812 of 1,776) and they concede 34.4 rebounds per contest as a unit. They are currently ranked 310th in the nation in allowing assists with 426 surrendered so far this season.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Villanova Wildcats went home defeated by a final of 73-63 when they faced Connecticut. The Wildcats collected 11 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 18 in the game. They gave up possession of the ball 9 times, while earning 8 steals in this game. Connecticut was called for 15 fouls for the contest which got the Wildcats to the charity stripe for a total of 14 tries. They were able to bury 9 of them for a percentage of 64.3%. In reference to 3-point attempts, Villanova buried 6 out of 24 attempts (25.0%). When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats shot 24 out of 59 from the field which had them shooting 40.7%. The Wildcats allowed Connecticut to knock down 28 out of their 51 tries from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 54.9% for this contest. They finished shooting 31.6% from 3-point land by connecting on 6 of 19 and finished the contest at 11 of 13 from the free throw line (84.6%). Regarding rebounding, Villanova permitted Connecticut to snag 32 in total (9 offensive).

Tyler Perkins ended up being important for the Wildcats in this contest. He knocked down 6 out of 13 in this game giving him a rate of 46.2%, and tallied 6 rebounds. He recorded 15 points in his 32 minutes of playing time and accumulated 2 dimes for the game.

Villanova has a mark of 21-6 this season. The Wildcats have committed 15.9 fouls per contest and they go 68.8% from the free throw line. Their rate of earning assists is at 15.4 times per game (98th in Division 1) and they are giving up possession 10.0 times per contest. Villanova has scored 2,099 pts this season (77.7 per game) and they pull in 35.2 rebounds per game. In terms of offensive execution, the Wildcats are connecting on 45.7% from the field, which has them ranked 157th in the nation.

The Wildcats on the defensive end are ranked 78th in the country in PPG given up with 70.0. They are able to force 12.7 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 44.7% from the floor (222nd in Division 1). The Villanova defense allows 33.8% on three-point shots (199 of 588) and opponents are knocking down 70.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They have allowed 13.6 dimes and 34.4 total rebounds per game, which has them ranked 200th and 187th in the nation.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Butler

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