South Dakota Coyotes vs UMKC Kangaroos Prediction, 1/8/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: South Dakota Coyotes vs UMKC Kangaroos

Date: Friday, January 8, 2021

Location: Swinney Recreation Center in Kansas City, MO

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: South Dakota (-1)

The UMKC Kangaroos (5-6) host the South Dakota Coyotes (4-6) at Swinney Recreation Center on Friday. South Dakota opens this game as 1-point favorites. The total opens at 131.

South Dakota will enter this matchup with a mark of 4-6 this season. They average 72.5 points per contest (177th in college basketball) while going 44.5% from the floor. The Coyotes are connecting on 35.1% from downtown (71 of 202) and 74.0% from the charity stripe. As a unit, South Dakota is pulling down 35.1 boards per contest and has earned 144 assists on the season, which ranks 93rd in D-1 in terms of passing. They are turning it over 11.1 times per game and as a group they are committing 18.7 fouls on a nightly basis. On the defensive end, the Coyotes are able to force 12.7 turnovers per game and they draw 17.9 fouls. The Coyotes defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 40.4% (228 of 564) and they relinquish 35.0 rebounds per game as a team. They are currently ranked 154th in the country in giving up assists with 104 conceded on the campaign. They are giving up 30.9% from beyond the arc while they are 156th in Division 1 in PPG allowed (68.6).

The South Dakota Coyotes stepped onto the hardwood against the Denver Pioneers and went home with a win by a final score of 79-57 in their last contest. South Dakota wrapped up the contest having earned a 51.9% field goal percentage (28 of 54) and knocked down 8 of 23 shots from 3-point land. At the free throw line, the Coyotes made 15 of their 19 tries for a rate of 78.9%. When talking about rebounding, they compiled 42 with 7 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 13 assists for this game while having 5 steals and 2 blocked shots. In terms of defending, South Dakota allowed their opponent to shoot 51.9% from the field on 28 out of 54 shooting. Denver earned 11 dimes and had 6 steals in the matchup. In addition, the Pioneers pulled down 24 boards (3 offensive, 21 defensive) and got 2 blocked shots. Denver ended up shooting 82.6% from the free throw line by making 19 of 23 shots. They also made 6 of their 21 shots from three-point range.

Stanley Umude is a player who played a role in this game. He left the arena with 27 points on 10 out of 14 shooting. He was on the court for 32 minutes and collected 11 rebounds. Umude finished the game at 71.4% from the floor and distributed 2 dimes. One more player that came through in this contest for the Coyotes was A.J. Plitzuweit. He had 4 rebounds and also accumulated 5 dimes. He finished the game shooting 54.5% from the floor for the contest by going 6-of-11 (19 points). When the final whistle blew, Plitzuweit played for 28 minutes.

UMKC has a record of 5-6 for the year. When it comes to offensive execution, the Kangaroos are shooting 54.2% from the field, which is 15th in the nation. UMKC has accounted for 846 pts so far this season (76.9 per game) and they pull in 33.6 boards per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 18.5 times per contest (16th in Division 1) and they lose possession via turnover 13.3 times per game. The Kangaroos are committing 22.9 fouls per game and they shoot 59.1% from the free throw line. The Kangaroos on the defensive end are ranked 20th in college basketball in PPG given up with 60.4. The UMKC defense surrenders 28.2% on shots from beyond the arc (64 of 227) and their opponents are knocking down 67.4% of their free throw attempts. They have conceded 10.9 assists and 29.4 rebounds every game, which ranks them 59th and 17th in D-1. They are forcing their opponents into 17.1 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 39.1% from the floor (45th in the nation).

When they last stepped on the court, the UMKC Kangaroos got the victory with a final of 77-53 when they played the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. The Kangaroos earned 26 defensive boards and 4 offensive boards for a total of 30 for the contest. They also rejected 3 tries while recording 5 steals in this game. The Fighting Hawks were called for 16 personal fouls for the game which got the Kangaroos to the free throw line for 14 attempts. They were able to convert 11 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 78.6%. In the matter of 3-point attempts, UMKC made 2 out of their 7 attempts (28.6%). Overall, the Kangaroos shot 32 out of 52 from the floor which gave them a rate of 61.5%. The Kangaroos allowed the Fighting Hawks to make 18 out of 49 tries from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 36.7% in this matchup. They went 21.1% from 3-point land by shooting 4 out of 19 and ended up going 13 out of 24 at the free throw line (54.2%). In regard to how they attacked the glass, UMKC permitted North Dakota to pull down 22 in all (7 offensive).

Josiah Allick ended up having an impact for the Kangaroos in the matchup. He knocked down 10 out of 15 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 66.7%, which had him sitting at 23 points. Allick collected 6 boards in his 32 minutes and had 2 dimes in this matchup. One more player that was important for UMKC was Brandon McKissic. He totaled 17 points in 29 minutes played by way of 7 of 10 shooting in the game. McKissic finished going 70.0% from the field and also contributing 3 assists and 8 boards.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take South Dakota (-1)

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