Cleveland State Vikings vs Xavier Musketeers Prediction, 3/15/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Cleveland State Vikings vs Xavier Musketeers

Date: Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Location: Cintas Center in Cincinnati, OH

TV: ESPNU

Odds/Point Spread: Cleveland State (+12)

Cintas Center is the site where the Xavier Musketeers (18-13) will meet the Cleveland State Vikings (20-10) on Tuesday. Cleveland State opens this contest as 12-point dogs. The over/under has been set at 146.5.

The Cleveland State Vikings stepped onto the hardwood against Wright State and ended up losing by a score of 82-67 in their last game. When it comes to personal fouls, the Vikings ended up finishing with 25 and Wright State recorded 20 personal fouls. They buried 9 of 18 shots from beyond the perimeter. Wright State finished the game shooting 85.2% at the charity stripe by converting 23 of their 27 attempts. In addition, Wright State snagged 33 boards (8 offensive, 25 defensive), but didn't have a block. Wright State doled out 17 dimes and had 4 steals in the matchup. In terms of the defense, Cleveland State allowed 49.0% from the floor on 25 of 51 shooting. They also recorded 14 assists in this contest as well as forcing 16 turnovers and earning 10 steals. With respect to hauling in boards, they compiled 28 with 14 of them being on the offensive end. At the charity stripe, the Vikings made 14 of their 24 tries for a percentage of 58.3%. Cleveland State finished having earned a 39.7% field goal percentage (25 out of 63) and knocked down 3 of their 20 shots from beyond the arc.

Broc Finstuen is someone who was a major contributor in this matchup. He ended up going 57.1% from the field and also totaled 3 assists. He played 26 mins played and also pulled down 9 boards. He left the arena with 12 points on 4 of 7 shooting.

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Cleveland State comes into this game with a record of 20-10 this season. They lose possession via turnover 13.4 times per contest and as a group they are committing 18.1 personal fouls per game. As a team, Cleveland State is pulling in 35.0 rebounds per contest and has earned 500 assists on the campaign, which ranks 36th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Vikings are connecting on 33.2% on shots beyond the perimeter (196 of 590) and 67.1% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 75.6 points per contest (57th in Division 1) while going 47.9% from the field.

Defensively, the Vikings have forced 15.5 turnovers every game while drawing 16.8 fouls. They are ranked 154th in college basketball in allowing assists with 386 surrendered this year. The Vikings defense is allowing a FG percentage of 42.2% (718 of 1,700) and they relinquish 32.5 boards per game as a basketball team. They are conceding 32.1% on three-point shots and they are ranked 198th in college hoops in PPG from their opponents (69.9).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Xavier Musketeers went home defeated by a final of 89-82 when they faced Butler. In the matter of rebounds, Xavier allowed Butler to get 38 overall (6 offensive). They finished 27.6% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 8 out of 29 and ended up shooting 25 of 32 from the charity stripe (78.1%). The Musketeers permitted Butler to convert 28 of their 64 attempts from the field which gave them a rate of 43.8% for the matchup. When the game finished, the Musketeers shot 33 out of 70 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 47.1%. When discussing 3-point attempts, Xavier made 3 of their 15 tries (20.0%). They were able to knock down 13 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 44.8%. Butler earned 25 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Musketeers to the charity stripe for 29 attempts. They also turned the ball over 6 times, while recording 4 steals for the matchup. The Musketeers corralled 28 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds for a total of 37 in this game.

Jack Nunge ended up being a major contributor for the Musketeers in this game. He converted 9 out of 12 for the matchup for a field goal percentage of 75.0%, and added 9 rebounds. He racked up 24 points in his 38 mins on the court, but left the arena with no assists.

Xavier has a mark of 18-13 on the year. In terms of offensive execution, the Musketeers are hitting on 44.6% from the floor, which is 138th in college basketball. Xavier has accounted for 2,292 points so far this year (73.9 per game) and they snag 37.3 rebounds per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 14.5 times per contest (76th in college basketball) and they turn the ball over 11.6 times per game. The Musketeers have committed 15.5 personal fouls every game and they shoot 70.1% from the free throw line.

The Musketeers on the defensive side of the court are 186th in D-1 in PPG allowed with 69.2. They are forcing 12.7 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 42.4% from the field (137th in college hoops). The Xavier defense concedes 32.7% on shots from beyond the arc (224 of 684) and opponents are converting on 74.5% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 12.3 dimes and 34.5 rebounds every game, which is ranked 155th and 169th in those categories.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Cleveland State (+12)

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