North Carolina State Wolfpack vs Clemson Tigers Prediction, 1/5/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: NC State Wolfpack vs Clemson Tigers

Date: Tuesday, January 5, 2021

Location: Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, SC

TV: ACCN

Odds/Point Spread: North Carolina State (+5.5)

The NC State Wolfpack (6-1) are headed to Littlejohn Coliseum on Tuesday where they'll meet the Clemson Tigers (8-1). Clemson opens this matchup as 5.5-point favorites. The O/U has been set at 136.

North Carolina State will take the court with a record of 6-1 on the season. They average 81.0 points per contest (51st in D-1) on 49.2% from the field. The Wolfpack are connecting on 37.1% on 3-pointers (53 of 143) and 65.6% from the charity stripe. As a unit, North Carolina State is pulling in 33.4 boards per contest and has accounted for 102 assists on the campaign, which ranks 209th in the nation in terms of passing the rock. They are losing possession via turnover 12.4 times per contest and as a basketball team are committing 17.9 personal fouls every game. When they are on defense, the Wolfpack are able to force 20.6 turnovers every game and they draw 18.7 fouls. They are currently ranked 90th in the nation in giving up assists to the opposition with 82 surrendered for the campaign. The Wolfpack defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 43.1% (166 of 385) and they surrender 36.3 boards per game as a team. They give up 31.5% on 3-point shots and they are 72nd in D-1 in PPG allowed (64.7).

The NC State Wolfpack faced the Boston College Eagles and went home with a win by a final score of 79-76 in their last contest. North Carolina State ended the game with a 51.9% field goal percentage (28 of 54) and buried 5 of 20 shots from beyond the arc. At the free throw line, the Wolfpack buried 18 of their 26 tries for a percentage of 69.2%. In reference to pulling down boards, they collected 29 with 9 of them being offensive. They also recorded 13 assists in this game as well as having 10 steals and 2 blocked shots. Regarding defense, North Carolina State allowed the other team to go 51.9% from the floor on 28 out of 54 shooting. Boston College distributed 9 assists and had 6 steals for the matchup. In addition, the Eagles collected 26 rebounds (10 offensive, 16 defensive) and had 2 blocks. Boston College ended up shooting 75.0% from the charity stripe by making 12 of their 16 attempts. They also made 10 of their 23 attempts from beyond the perimeter.

D.J. Funderburk is someone who was a major contributor in this game. He walked away with 21 points on 8 of 10 shooting. He saw the court for 30 minutes and snagged 5 rebounds. Funderburk ended up going 80.0% from the floor and recorded 2 assists. An additional guy that was a determining factor in the game for the Wolfpack was Jericole Hellems. He snagged 6 boards and also tallied 2 assists. He finished the contest at 62.5% from the field in this contest by connecting on 5-of-8 (20 points). In all, Hellems played 35 min.

Clemson has a mark of 8-1 for the season. Clemson has accounted for 609 points for the season (67.7 per game) and they pull in 34.2 rebounds per contest. The Tigers are committing 17.3 fouls per game and they shoot 74.8% from the free throw line. As an offense, the Tigers are shooting 42.4% from the floor, which has them ranked 260th in college hoops. Their rate of earning assists is at 13.2 times per contest (192nd in college basketball) and they turn it over 13.3 times per game. The Tigers are ranked 4th in D-1 in PPG allowed with 56.2. They have surrendered 10.0 dimes and 33.4 boards every game, which is 27th and 101st in the country. The Clemson defense surrenders 29.1% on 3-pointers (51 of 175) and their opponents are converting on 65.1% of their free throw shots. They are forcing 18.4 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 38.7% from the field (36th in college basketball).

The last time they took the court, the Clemson Tigers went home victorious with a score of 66-65 against the Miami Hurricanes. The Tigers recorded 19 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds for a total of 25 in this contest. They also turned away 5 shots while getting 6 steals in this matchup. The Hurricanes earned 13 fouls for the matchup which got the Tigers to the free throw line for 7 attempts. They were able to convert 5 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 71.4%. When talking about shots from distance, Clemson converted 9 out of their 21 attempts (42.9%). When all was said and done, the Tigers shot 26 for 59 from the field which gave them a percentage of 44.1%. The Tigers allowed the Hurricanes to convert 23 out of 49 tries from the floor which had them shooting 46.9% in this game. They shot 41.2% from distance via 7 of 17 and finished the contest at 12 of 18 at the free throw line (66.7%). In the matter of team rebounding, Clemson allowed Miami to collect 31 in total (7 offensive).

Aamir Simms pitched in for the Tigers for this game. He converted 10 of 14 for the game for a field goal percentage of 71.4%, which earned him 25 points. Simms pulled down 7 rebounds in his 33 minutes played and totaled 4 dimes for the contest. Someone else that was important for Clemson was Alex Hemenway. He racked up 8 points in his 16 minutes on the hardwood via 3 out of 6 from the floor in this contest. Hemenway ended the game having shot 50.0% from the field in addition to earning 2 dimes and 2 rebounds.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Clemson (-5.5)

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