​Cover Photo: Harry How/Getty Images


The last game before the full madness starts on Thursday is a battle between the final two teams to make it into the bracket, Arizona State and St. John's. 


Arizona State snuck in as the third Pac-12 team in the field, sporting a 22-10 record and a 12-6 conference record in a very weak Pac-12 conference. St. John's was the 68th team added to the field as two wins over Marquette and a win over Villanova helped overrule its otherwise mediocre 8-10 conference record. 


But while both teams made the field, only one will be able to travel to Tulsa to take on Buffalo this Friday. Arizona State is a 1.5-point favorite on ​​​FanDuel Sportsbook, so the odds suggest it will be very close. In a game with two teams desperately trying to survive, let's see who the experts think will be moving on.


Arizona State vs St. John's Predictions


Picks And Parlays

The Picks And Parlays staff is going with Arizona State to easily win and cover with a projected score of 80-68. Arizona State has looked much better as of late, while St. John's has lost four of its last five games. 


Scores & Stats

Scores & Stats is predicting a much closer matchup, but still, have the Sun Devils winning and covering, 75-72. Arizona State has the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year in Luguentz Dort and the only player in the Pac-12 to average a double-double in Zylan Cheatham. Those two players will be able to power Arizona State to the win. 


Sports Chat Place

The team at Sports Chat Place is also going with Arizona State to win and cover with a potential chance for a blowout. The Sun Devils are a very good offensive team while St. John's has allowed 50.4-percent shooting in its last five games. If recent trends for both of these teams continue, St. John's time in the tournament could be short-lived.


ESPN Basketball Power Index Matchup Predictor 

ESPN BPI disagrees with everyone here including the oddsmakers, giving St. John's a 51.3-percent chance to win. 


Overall that's three out of the four experts rolling with the Sun Devils to survive and advance, while all three against the spreads picks are going with Arizona State. 

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Ian McCafferty is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Ian McCafferty also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username itmccaff. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel