UMass Minutemen vs Rhode Island Rams Prediction, 2/6/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: UMass Minutemen vs Rhode Island Rams

Date: Saturday, February 6, 2021

Location: Ryan Center in Kingston, RI

TV: ESPN2

Odds/Point Spread: UMass (+7)

The UMass Minutemen (6-4) head to Ryan Center on Saturday where they'll take on the Rhode Island Rams (9-10). Rhode Island opens this contest as 7-point favorites. The total is set at 145.

UMass enters this one with a mark of 6-4 so far this season. They are averaging 78.2 pts per contest (51st in D-1) while connecting on 41.0% from the floor. The Minutemen are hitting 32.0% from downtown (87 of 272) and 73.9% from the charity stripe. As a unit, UMass is pulling down 35.6 rebounds per contest and has racked up 155 assists for the campaign, which is 279th in college hoops in terms of passing. They are giving up possession 12.2 times per contest and as a team they are committing 18.1 personal fouls per game. When they are on the defensive end, the Minutemen have forced 16.3 turnovers per game while drawing 21.0 personal fouls. They relinquish 34.8% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 233rd in D-1 in opponents PPG (72.3). The Minutemen are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 46.7% (266 of 569) and they relinquish 36.7 boards per contest as a squad. They rank 58th in the nation in giving up assists with 150 relinquished so far this season.

The UMass Minutemen stepped onto the hardwood against the Fordham Rams and earned the victory with a final of 60-54 in their last contest. UMass wrapped up the game with a 35.1% field goal percentage (20 out of 57) and buried 8 of their 32 three-point shots. At the charity stripe, the Minutemen converted 12 of their 19 tries for a percentage of 63.2%. When talking about getting rebounds, they compiled 33 with 11 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 14 dimes for this game as well as earning 11 steals and 4 blocks. With respect to defending, UMass allowed 35.1% from the floor on 20 out of 57 shooting. Fordham distributed 13 assists and had 6 steals in the game. In addition, the Rams collected 32 boards (4 offensive, 28 defensive) and had 4 blocked shots. Fordham ended up shooting 50.0% from the free throw line by knocking down 7 of their 14 tries. They also buried 3 out of their 14 attempts from three-point range.

Javohn Garcia is one guy who was a contributor for the matchup. He accumulated 14 points on 5 of 13 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 32 mins and also pulled down 3 rebounds. Garcia finished the contest at 38.5% from the field and also earned 5 dimes. An additional guy that was a determining factor in the game for the Minutemen was T.J. Weeks. He grabbed 12 boards and also totaled 5 dimes. He finished 33.3% from the field for the contest by shooting 5-of-15 (13 points). When the final whistle blew, Weeks was on the hardwood for 36 min.

Rhode Island has a record of 9-10 on the year. When it comes to offense, the Rams are connecting on 45.2% from the field, which ranks them 130th in the country. Rhode Island has accounted for 1,355 pts for the campaign (71.3 per game) and they pull in 38.4 rebounds per contest. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 11.6 times per game (283rd in the country) and they cough up possession 15.2 times per contest. The Rams are committing 18.0 personal fouls per game and they shoot 68.0% from the free throw line. The Rams on defense are ranked 126th in Division 1 in points per game surrendered with 68.3. They have forced 13.0 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 40.0% from the floor (33rd in D-1). The Rhode Island defense concedes 31.5% on shots from beyond the arc (136 of 432) and opponents are converting on 69.1% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 12.5 dimes and 34.1 rebounds every game, which has them ranked 141st and 127th in those categories on the defensive end.

In their last game, the Rhode Island Rams took a loss by a score of 63-62 when they played the VCU Rams. The Rams snagged 21 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards for a total of 32 for this game. They rejected 8 shots while earning 8 steals for the contest. The Rams had 14 personal fouls in this contest which got the Rams to the free throw line for a total of 8 attempts. They were able to bury 5 of them for a percentage of 62.5%. In regard to shots from 3-point land, Rhode Island buried 5 of 19 tries (26.3%). When the final whistle blew, the Rams finished 26 out of 60 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 43.3%. The Rams permitted the Rams to bury 21 out of their 57 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 36.8% for the contest. They finished the game shooting 33.3% from downtown by going 7 out of 21 and walked away from this one shooting 14 of 18 at the free throw line (77.8%). Concerning rebounds, Rhode Island permitted VCU to pull down 32 in all (9 offensive).

Ishmael Leggett was important for the Rams in the matchup. He made 6 of 11 in this game for a rate of 54.5%, which had him sitting at 17 points. Leggett pulled down 4 boards in his 35 minutes and had 2 assists in this game. Someone else who was a determining factor for Rhode Island was Jeremy Sheppard. He left the arena with 13 points in his 40 minutes played via 6 of 13 from the floor for the matchup. Sheppard walked away from this one going 46.2% from the field and also contributing 6 assists and 2 total rebounds.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Rhode Island (-7)

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