The first of two semifinal matchups at Madison Square Garden features two top-25 teams: No. 25 Marquette vs. No. 6 St. John’s. The Golden Eagles beat Xavier 89-87 on Thursday in their first game in the Big East tournament. St. John’s had a big 21-point victory against Butler yesterday. The Red Storm have beaten the Golden Eagles twice this season with their previous matchup less than a week ago.

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After only scoring 15 points in their first game of the season, Kam Jones had an incredible performance on March 8, scoring 32 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. He has been on an unreal stretch lately, scoring 29 or more points in his last two contests. Although St. John’s is the deeper team, Jones will be the best player in this game.

Marquette senior guard Stevie Mitchell is key to the Golden Eagles ‘ success. This season, he was held to only two and four points against St. John’s. Mitchell is coming off a 16-point performance against Xavier and needs to have a strong game to have a chance to pull off the upset. Jones and Mitchell must contain star Red Storm guard RJ Luis Jr., who dropped 28 points against them last week.

The Golden Eagles are 5-3 in their last eight games, and after losing by only three points to St. John’s six days ago, it is wise to back them on DraftKings Sportsbook at +3.5. Jones has found a ton of success at the world’s most famous arena, scoring at least 20 points in two of his last three games in this tournament.

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