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The No. 7 seed Marquette Golden Eagles and the No. 10 seed New Mexico Lobos play in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament on Friday. New Mexico went 26-7 in the regular season. This is their 17th appearance in the tournament and second in a row. Meanwhile, Marquette finished with a 23-10 during the campaign. The Golden Eagles are playing in the NCAA Tournament for the 37th time in school history, including the fourth straight year.

Tipoff from the Rocket Arena is at 7:25 p.m. ET. The latest New Mexico vs. Marquette odds via SportsLine consensus list the Golden Eagles as 4-point favorites, while the over/under for total points scored is 152.5. Before making any New Mexico vs. Marquette picks, you need to see the college basketball predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The model simulates every Division 1 college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters the 2025 NCAA Tournament on a 228-166 roll (+2025) on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to 2023. This model has also produced brackets that have beaten over 91% of CBS Sports entries in four of the last six tournaments and nailed 24 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds. Anyone following could have seen huge returns.

Now, the model has dialed in on New Mexico vs. Marquette and just revealed its coveted picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model's picks. Here are the college basketball lines and trends for Marquette vs. New Mexico: 

  • New Mexico vs. Marquette spread: Golden Eagles -4
  • New Mexico vs. Marquette over/under: 152.5 points 
  • New Mexico vs. Marquette money line: Golden Eagles -182, Lobos +151
  • New Mexico vs. Marquette picks: See picks at SportsLine

Why New Mexico can cover

Junior guard Donovan Dent owns a quick first step to blow past defenders as a scorer and facilitator. Dent leads the team in points (20.6) and assists (6.4) with 1.5 steals per game. The California native has scored at least 23 points in five of his past six games. On March 14 against Boise State, Dent had 23 points, two rebounds and five assists.

Senior center Nelly Junior Joseph provides this team with a consistent force in the lane. Junior Joseph ranked third in the country in rebounds (11.2) with 14 points and 1.5 blocks per game. He's notched 16 double-doubles this season. On March 13 against San Jose State, Junior Joesph tallied 14 points and 18 rebounds. See which side to pick at SportsLine.

Why Marquette can cover

Senior guard Kam Jones is a crafty three-level with good court vision as a passer. He leads the team in points (19.3) and assists (5.9) with 4.5 rebounds per game. The Tennessee native has scored 20-plus points in four straight games. In his last contest, Jones had 24 points and seven boards.

Senior forward David Joplin can shoot the ball on the outside and put the ball on the floor when needed. Joplin logs 13.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game. On March 13 against Xavier, Joplin had 14 points, six rebounds and knocked down three 3-pointers. See which side to pick at SportsLine.

How to make New Mexico vs. Marquette picks

SportsLine's model is leaning Under the total, predicting the teams will combine for 152 points. It also says one side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations. See which side to back at SportsLine.

So who wins New Mexico vs. Marquette, and which side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up more than $2,000 on top-rated spread picks since 2023, and find out.