Mississippi State Bulldogs vs Alabama Crimson Tide Prediction, 3/12/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Mississippi State Bulldogs vs Alabama Crimson Tide

Date: Friday, March 12, 2021

Location: Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: Mississippi State (+8.5)

The Mississippi State Bulldogs (14-13) go to Bridgestone Arena on Friday where they'll take on the Alabama Crimson Tide (21-6). Alabama opens this contest as 8.5-point favorites. The total has been set at 141.

Mississippi State heads into this matchup with a record of 14-13 for the year. The Bulldogs are shooting 34.9% on shots from distance (145 of 415) and 64.1% from the free throw line. They average 69.4 points per game (233rd in D-1) while shooting 45.5% from the floor. They lose possession by turning the ball over 14.9 times per contest and as a squad they are committing 15.6 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Mississippi State is pulling in 38.9 boards per contest and has earned 351 dimes for the campaign, which is 87th in the nation in terms of passing. On defense, the Bulldogs have forced 12.3 turnovers per game and they draw 16.1 personal fouls. They are relinquishing 31.7% on three-point shots and they are ranked 60th in the nation in opponents PPG (65.7). The Bulldogs defensively are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 39.9% (635 of 1,590) and they concede 32.1 rebounds per game as a group. They rank 308th in college basketball in allowing assists to their opponents with 366 relinquished for the season.

The Mississippi State Bulldogs took the court against the Auburn Tigers and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 78-71 in their last game. Mississippi State finished the game having earned a 45.0% field goal percentage (27 out of 60) and knocked down 2 out of their 10 shots from distance. At the free throw line, the Bulldogs made 15 of 24 attempts for a percentage of 62.5%. When discussing pulling down boards, they collected 35 with 15 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 9 assists in the game as well as forcing the opposition into 9 turnovers and earning 6 steals. In terms of defense, Mississippi State allowed 43.5% from the floor on 27 of 62 shooting. Auburn recorded 15 dimes and had 3 steals in the game. Furthurmore, Auburn snagged 32 boards (12 offensive, 20 defensive) and got 6 blocks. Auburn ended up going 86.7% when shooting free throws by burying 13 of their 15 attempts. They also knocked down 11 of their 33 shots from beyond the arc.

Tolu Smith is one guy who came through in this game. He was able to score 20 points on 7 out of 17 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 36 minutes and also pulled down 9 boards. Smith ended up shooting 41.2% from the field but had no assists when the time ran out. One more player that had an impact in this contest for the Bulldogs was D.J. Stewart. He collected 5 rebounds in his 37 min on the hardwood. He ended up shooting 53.3% from the field in this contest by going 8-of-15 (19 points). When the final whistle blew, Stewart totaled 1 assist.

Alabama has a win-loss mark of 21-6 this year. Alabama has scored 2,149 points on the campaign (79.6 per game) and they pull in 40.3 rebounds per game. The Crimson Tide have committed 18.7 fouls per contest while shooting 71.5% from the charity stripe. As an offensive unit, the Crimson Tide are shooting 43.1% from the floor, which is 238th in college hoops. They are assisting teammates 14.1 times per game (111th in D-1) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 14.3 times per contest. The Crimson Tide are ranked 185th in college basketball in points per game surrendered with 70.3. They have conceded 11.1 assists and 38.6 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 51st and 315th in the country. The Alabama defense concedes 29.0% on shots from distance (162 of 558) and opponents are making 68.4% of their free throw shots. They are able to force 16.0 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 40.9% from the floor (53rd in college hoops).

In their last game, the Alabama Crimson Tide went home victorious with a score of 89-79 when they played the Georgia Bulldogs. The Crimson Tide earned 30 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards for a total of 43 for the matchup. They turned it over 21 times, while getting 10 steals in this game. The Bulldogs were called for 17 fouls for this contest which got the Crimson Tide to the charity stripe for 20 tries. They were able to make 13 of those for a percentage of 65.0%. With respect to three-point attempts, Alabama converted 10 out of their 22 tries (45.5%). When the final whistle blew, the Crimson Tide finished the game shooting 33 out of 68 from the floor which gave them a rate of 48.5%. The Crimson Tide allowed the Bulldogs to knock down 29 out of 62 tries from the field which gave them a percentage of 46.8% for the game. They finished 42.1% from beyond the perimeter by hitting 8 of 19 and finished the contest at 13 of 23 at the charity stripe (56.5%). In reference to how they rebounded, Alabama allowed Georgia to pull down 28 in total (5 offensive).

John Petty was important for the Crimson Tide for the contest. He converted 5 of 8 in this contest giving him a rate of 62.5%, and tallied 7 rebounds. Petty earned 15 points in his 29 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist in this matchup. Someone else that played a role for Alabama was Jaden Shackelford. He ended up finishing with 2 dimes in his 32 mins on the hardwood, and he shot 6 out of 14 from the floor. Shackelford finished going 42.9% from the field while also contributing 14 points and 6 rebounds.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Alabama (-8.5)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here