Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Alabama Crimson Tide Prediction, 12/19/2020 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Alabama Crimson Tide

Date: Saturday, December 19, 2020

Location: Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, AL

TV: ESPNU

Odds/Point Spread: Western Kentucky (+7)

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (5-2) head to Coleman Coliseum on Saturday where they'll take on the Alabama Crimson Tide (4-2). Western Kentucky opens this matchup as 7-point underdogs. The total opens at 153.5.

Western Kentucky will enter this contest with a win-loss mark of 5-2 on the year. They currently have an average of 76.6 points per contest (125th in college basketball) while hitting 44.7% from the floor. The Hilltoppers are hitting 30.3% on three-point shots (40 of 132) and 76.0% from the free throw line. As a team, Western Kentucky is snagging 38.9 rebounds per contest and has tallied 98 assists for the campaign, which ranks 70th in the country in terms of passing. They lose possession via turnover 12.9 times per contest and as a unit are committing 15.1 fouls per game. When they are on defense, the Hilltoppers have forced 13.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 19.1 personal fouls. The Hilltoppers are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 44.9% (185 of 412) and they surrender 31.1 boards per contest as a unit. They are currently ranked 296th in D-1 in giving up assists to their opponents with 100 surrendered so far this season. They relinquish 44.7% from beyond the arc while they are 239th in college basketball in points per game allowed (74.1).

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers took the court against the Rhode Island Rams and notched a win by a score of 68-65 in their last game. Western Kentucky ended the contest with a 42.3% field goal percentage (22 out of 52) and converted 3 out of their 12 3-point shots. From the charity stripe, the Hilltoppers buried 21 of their 26 shots for a percentage of 80.8%. Pertaining to getting rebounds, they earned a total of 35 with 11 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 11 dimes for this game as well as getting 10 steals and 6 blocked shots. When talking about defense, Western Kentucky allowed 42.3% from the floor on 22 out of 52. Rhode Island dished out 11 assists and 11 steals in the matchup. Furthurmore, the Rams pulled down 26 boards (8 offensive, 18 defensive) and had 6 blocks. Rhode Island ended up shooting 73.3% from the free throw line by making 11 of 15 attempts. They converted 6 of 18 shots from long range.

Josh Anderson is a guy who was a major factor for this game. He ended up finishing with 15 points on 4 out of 5 shooting. He played 31 minutes and snagged 5 boards. Anderson went 80.0% from the floor and earned 2 dimes. An additional guy that saw the court a lot in this matchup for the Hilltoppers was Taveion Hollingsworth. He pulled down 7 rebounds and also tallied 3 assists. He finished shooting 45.5% from the field in this contest by connecting on 5-of-11 (14 points). When the game finished, Hollingsworth played for 31 min.

Alabama has a mark of 4-2 this year. In terms of offensive execution, the Crimson Tide are connecting on 40.9% from the floor, which ranks them 293rd in the nation. Alabama has tallied 458 pts on the campaign (76.3 per game) and they grab 41.2 rebounds per game. They are dishing out assists 13.2 times per contest (192nd in the nation) and they are turning it over 12.3 times per game. The Crimson Tide commit 16.8 fouls per contest and they connect on 69.4% from the charity stripe. The Crimson Tide on the defensive side of the court are 200th in the nation in PPG given up with 71.3. The Alabama defense surrenders 33.5% from downtown (53 of 158) and their opponents are connecting on 67.0% of their shots from the charity stripe. They concede 13.0 assists and 38.7 boards on a nightly basis, which is ranked 177th and 261st in the country. They have forced 15.3 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 42.5% from the field (173rd in college hoops).

In their last game, the Alabama Crimson Tide went home victorious with a score of 83-80 when they played the Furman Paladins. The Crimson Tide were able to snag 23 defensive boards and 17 offensive rebounds for a total of 40 for this game. They stuffed 4 shots while earning 5 steals for this contest. The Paladins were called for 21 personal fouls for this game which took the Crimson Tide to the free throw line for a total of 25 attempts. They were able to knock down 13 of the free throw tries for a clip of 52.0%. When it comes to shooting from beyond the arc, Alabama buried 10 of 31 tries (32.3%). Overall, the Crimson Tide shot 30 for 67 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.8%. The Crimson Tide allowed the Paladins to convert 28 of their 59 attempts from the floor which had them at 47.5% for this game. They went 36.1% from beyond the arc by shooting 13 of 36 and finished the contest at 11 out of 13 at the charity stripe (84.6%). With respect to rebounding, Alabama permitted Furman to grab 26 in total (4 on the offensive side).

Jaden Shackelford was important for the Crimson Tide for the contest. He made 4 out of 9 in this game giving him a field goal percentage of 44.4%, which had him finishing with 13 points. Shackelford grabbed 4 boards in his 29 mins and accumulated 2 dimes for the contest. An additional guy that played a role for Alabama was Herbert Jones. He scored 18 points in his 32 minutes played via 7 of 16 shooting for the game. Jones walked away from this one going 43.8% from the floor while also contributing 4 assists and 12 total rebounds.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Western Kentucky (+7)

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