The Butler Bulldogs, who have played in the NCAA Tournament eight of the past 11 seasons, hit the road for the opening round of the NIT Tournament, taking on the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Wednesday in a nationally televised matchup. It's a 9 p.m. ET tipoff from Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb. Butler (16-16) limps into the NIT on a 1-5 slide, while Nebraska (18-16) has won three of four to rebound from a mid-season swoon. The latest Butler vs. Nebraska odds have the Cornhuskers favored by five-points, with the over-under, or total points Vegas thinks will be scored, at 143.5. These teams have differing styles and they haven't met on the court since 1986, so before locking in any Butler vs. Nebraska picks of your own, you'll want to check out what the SportsLine Projection Model has to say.

This model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, has raked in the winnings for those following its picks. Over the past two years, the SportsLine Projection Model has returned over $4,000 to $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks. It also entered the postseason on a strong 11-5 run on all top-rated college basketball picks. Anyone who has followed it is way up. 

Now it has analyzed all relevant data and crunched the numbers for Nebraska vs. Butler. We can tell you it's leaning under, but it also has a strong point-spread pick that hits in well over 50 percent of simulations. That pick is only available at SportsLine. 

The model has taken into account that Nebraska won three straight before falling 66-62 to Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. The strong finish coincides with James Palmer's level of play. He averaged 24.3 points per game in Nebraska's three Big Ten Tournament contests, including 34 against Rutgers, one point from the tourney record.

Being at home certainly benefits Nebraska, which was 12-5 at home this season. Butler was just 2-9 on the road. Plus, home teams went a perfect 16-0 in the opening round of the 2018 NIT Tournament. Nebraska was only 4-13 against NCAA Tournament teams, but a perfect 3-0 against NIT qualifiers (Creighton, Clemson, Indiana). 

But just because the Huskers are the higher seed and at home doesn't mean they can cover the Nebraska vs. Butler spread.

The model also knows Butler finished tied for last in the parity-filled Big East. But had it not blown a 10-point lead in the final minutes of one game and come up on the short end of two overtime games, the Bulldogs would have taken third.

Butler has a go-to guy in Kamar Baldwin. The 6-1 junior averages 18.9 points and earned All-Big East second team honors. It should have a huge advantage in depth as well. Nebraska had just six scholarship players and two walk-ons, while Butler's bench has outscored the opposition by a wide margin, led by the Big East Sixth Man of the Year, 6-2 senior Paul Jorgensen.

Who wins Butler vs. Nebraska? And which side of the spread hits in well over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the Butler vs. Nebraska spread you need to jump on, all from the model that has crushed college hoops, and find out.