Holy Cross vs Maryland Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for March 17 NCAA Women's Tournament Game (Terrapins Move On)

Holy Cross vs Maryland Game Info

• 2022-23 NCAA Women's Tournament Game
• Holy Cross (24-8, 13-4 Away) vs. No. 7 Maryland (25-6,11-2 Home)
• Date: Friday, March 17, 2023
• Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
• Venue: XFINITY Center -- College Park, Maryland
• Coverage: ESPNN

Friday, March 17's 2022-23 NCAA Women's Tournament lineup features the No. 15 Holy Cross Crusaders going one-on-one with the No. 2 Maryland Terrapins in a first-round Greenville Region clash.

Holy Cross is on a six-game winning streak, most recently defeating Boston College 66-61 to win the Patriot League Championship. Meanwhile, Maryland's winning streak came to an end at seven games with an 89-84 loss to Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.

Which team will advance with a win on Friday? Let's explore.

Holy Cross vs Maryland Odds & Spread

• All women's college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: HC: (+4000) | MD: (-10000)
• Spread: HC: +26.5 (-108) | MD: -26.5 (-112)
• Total: 133.5 -- Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

Maryland enters this contest as a dominant favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 2:30 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 133.5 points with both sides available at -110 odds.

Holy Cross vs Maryland Prediction & Pick

Maryland shouldn't have any issues moving past Holy Cross. The Terrapins average the 13th-most points (79.0 PPG) on the 43rd-best field-goal percentage (44.1%) in the country. For comparison, the Crusaders average a mere 61.8 PPG (No. 242) while hitting 42.3% of their shots from the floor (No. 106).

And while Holy Cross may have the better defensive numbers on paper, that's because of the weaker competition that the Patriot League offers. Considering how the Crusaders haven't made it beyond Round 1 in over 30 years, I don't see them putting up much of a fight.

Maryland is a top-25 program nationwide for a reason. Don't overthink things here.

Final Score Prediction: Maryland: 83 | Holy Cross: 53

Holy Cross vs Maryland Best Bet

The odds point toward Maryland covering the spread and it's hard to disagree. The Terrapins are capable of blowing out any team with their thunderous offense and Holy Cross is no exception. Even though a 26.5-point spread is far from ideal, it's a much better option than chasing the moneyline.

Bet: Maryland -26.5 (-112)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. 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.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.