Omaha vs. St. John's Prediction, Odds, and Prop Bet for NCAA Tournament First Round

Iain MacMillan | Mar 18, 2025

St. John's is a significant favorite against Omaha in the Round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament. / Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

St. John's had an unbelievably strong season, resulting in Big East regular season and tournament championships and a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They'll take on No. 15 seed, Omaha, in the opening round.

Omaha was the best team in the Summit League, finishing first in the regular season and then winning the conference tournament. Can they hang with the defensive juggernauts that are the Red Storm?

Omaha vs. St. John's Odds, Spread, and Total

Odds via BetMGM Sportsbook

Spread

• Omaha +18.5 (-105)
• St. John's -18.5 (-115)

Moneyline

• Omaha +1200
• St. John's -3000

Total

• OVER 147.5 (-115)
• UNDER 147.5 (-105)

Omaha vs. St. John's How to Watch

• Date: Thursday, March 20
• Game Time: 9:45 PM EST
• Venue: Amica Mutual Pavilion
• How to Watch (TV): CBS
• Omaha Record: 22-12
• St. John's Record: 30-4

Omaha vs. St. John's Best Prop Bet

• R.J. Luis UNDER 20.5 Points (-110) via BetMGM

I have no issue believing R.J. Luis could put up plenty of points in this game, but he's averaging 18.4 points per game this season and I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't play as many minutes as he usually does. St. John's is coming off a deep run in the Big East tournament and with them being significant favorites against Omaha, Rick Pitinio could opt to rest his top-scorer in the second half of the Red Storm are holding a big league.

Omaha vs. St. John's Prediction and Pick

St. John's is a disastrous matchup for any mid-major to face. The Red Storm are a top three defensive team in the country. They rank second in defensive efficiency and 14th in opponent field goal percentage. Now, they face an Omaha team that's 277th in defensive efficiency.

St. John's primarily takes two-point shots and now the Red Storm get to face-off against an Omaha defense that's 283rd in opponent two-point field goal percentage, allowing teams to shoot 53.5% from down low.

I'll lay the points with the Red Storm in this lopsided affair.

Pick: St. John's -18.5 (-115) via BetMGM

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