Portland State Vikings vs Sacramento State Hornets Prediction, 1/7/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Portland State Vikings vs Sacramento State Hornets

Date: Thursday, January 7, 2021

Location: The Nest in Sacramento, CA

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: Portland State (+5.5)

The Portland State Vikings (2-4) go to The Nest on Thursday where they'll take on the Sacramento State Hornets (4-1). Sacramento State opens this matchup as 5.5-point favorites. The O/U opens at 142.5.

Portland State enters this matchup with a mark of 2-4 on the campaign. The Vikings are shooting 26.1% on three-point attempts (40 of 153) and 74.8% from the free throw line. They average 70.5 points per contest (226th in the country) while hitting 37.9% from the floor. They are losing possession via turnover 16.2 times per contest and as a basketball team are committing 23.7 personal fouls per game. As a team, Portland State is collecting 42.2 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 68 dimes for the season, which has them ranked 292nd in college basketball in terms of passing. On the defensive end, the Vikings are forcing 14.3 turnovers per game and they draw 19.2 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 126th in college basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 93 surrendered so far this season. The Vikings defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 42.8% (145 of 339) and they concede 35.5 rebounds per contest as a group. They concede 31.8% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are ranked 240th in D-1 in points per game from their opponents (72.7).

The Portland State Vikings played the Oregon State Beavers and took a loss by a score of 67-62 in their last game. Portland State ended the game having earned a 42.9% FG percentage (21 out of 49) and made 7 of their 21 3-pointers. From the charity stripe, the Vikings made 13 of 16 attempts for a percentage of 81.3%. With regard to rebounding, they collected a total of 31 with 6 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 8 assists in this game while earning 5 steals and 3 rejections. When discussing defending, Portland State allowed their opponent to shoot 42.9% from the field on 21 of 49 shooting. Oregon State earned 15 dimes and had 6 steals for the matchup. Furthurmore, the Beavers snagged 31 rebounds (10 offensive, 21 defensive) and had 3 blocked shots. Oregon State walked away from this one shooting 65.5% at the free throw line by converting 19 of their 29 tries. They knocked down 8 out of their 21 tries from three-point range.

James Scott is a player who was a major factor for this contest. He ended up with 16 points on 6 out of 13 shooting. He played 34 mins played and grabbed 5 boards. Scott ended up shooting 46.2% from the field and distributed 2 assists. Someone else that was a major contributor in this matchup for the Vikings was Paris Dawson. He pulled down 2 rebounds and also accumulated 2 dimes. He shot 45.5% from the field in this contest by connecting on 5-of-11 (13 points). Overall, Dawson was on the court for 26 min.

Sacramento State has a mark of 4-1 for the season. In terms of offensive execution, the Hornets are shooting 48.5% from the floor, which is ranked 58th in the country. Sacramento State has totaled 381 pts on the year (76.2 per game) and they collect 36.8 rebounds per contest. They are dishing out assists 15.6 times per game (72nd in college basketball) and they lose possession via turnover 11.2 times per game. The Hornets are committing 17.8 personal fouls every game and they hit 72.7% from the charity stripe. The Hornets defensively are ranked 6th in D-1 in PPG surrendered with 57.2. The Sacramento State defense gives up 31.4% on shots from beyond the arc (27 of 86) and opponents are connecting on 74.3% of their free throw shots. They give up 12.2 dimes and 27.4 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 139th and 5th in the nation. They are able to force 16.0 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 41.6% from the floor (131st in D-1).

For their last game, the Sacramento State Hornets walked away with a victory by a final of 85-54 when they faced the Fresno Pacific Sunbirds. The Hornets recorded 27 defensive rebounds and 17 offensive rebounds totaling 44 in this contest. They turned away 2 tries while getting 10 steals in this contest. The Sunbirds were called for 15 fouls in the game which took the Hornets to the charity stripe for a total of 15 attempts. They were able to make 12 of them for a rate of 80.0%. With respect to three-point attempts, Sacramento State made 5 of 23 tries (21.7%). When the final whistle blew, the Hornets shot 34 out of 66 from the field which gave them a percentage of 51.5%. The Hornets allowed the Sunbirds to bury 21 of 49 tries from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 42.9% in this game. They went 25.0% from 3-point land by shooting 4 of 16 and ended up shooting 8 out of 11 at the free throw line (72.7%). When it comes to rebounding, Sacramento State allowed Fresno Pacific to collect 18 in total (2 offensive).

Christian Terrell was important for the Hornets in this contest. He buried 12 out of 16 for this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 75.0%, which earned him 26 points. Terrell had 5 rebounds in his 31 mins played and had 2 assists in this matchup. An additional guy who came through for Sacramento State was Ethan Esposito. He accumulated 22 points in 35 minutes on the hardwood by way of 10 out of 18 from the floor for this game. Esposito wrapped this one up going 55.6% from the field while also totaling 2 dimes and 13 total rebounds.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Portland State (+5.5)

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