Iona Gaels vs SMU Mustangs Prediction, 12/22/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Iona Gaels vs SMU Mustangs

Date: Thursday, December 22, 2022

Location: Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, HI

TV: ESPNU

The SMU Mustangs (3-7) will take on the Iona Gaels (7-3) at Stan Sheriff Center on Thursday.

The Iona Gaels played New Mexico and ended up losing by a score of 82-74 in their last game. Iona ended the contest with a 40.8% FG percentage (29 out of 71) and made 3 out of their 24 shots from beyond the perimeter. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Gaels made 13 of 16 attempts for a rate of 81.3%. In reference to hauling in boards, they earned 33 with 13 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 14 assists in this game as well as creating 15 turnovers and earning 9 steals. When talking about the defense, Iona allowed the other team to shoot 56.0% from the field on 28 out of 50 shooting. New Mexico doled out 19 dimes and had 5 steals in the game. On top of that, New Mexico had 29 boards (3 offensive, 26 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. New Mexico finished the game at 72.4% when shooting free throws by making 21 of their 29 tries. They converted 5 of 17 tries from distance. When talking about personal fouls, the Gaels ended up with 24 and New Mexico accumulated 15 personal fouls.

Nelly Junior Joseph is a guy who was a major contributor for the contest. He ended up going 60.0% from the floor and totaled 1 assist. He saw the court for 27 mins and also grabbed 6 boards. He finished with 21 points on 9 out of 15 shooting.

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Iona comes into this matchup with a mark of 7-3 on the year. They lose possession via turnover 10.2 times per contest and as a squad they commit 16.9 fouls per contest. As a team, Iona is collecting 35.0 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 168 assists this year, which has them ranked 134th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. The Gaels are connecting on 32.8% from downtown (65 of 198) and 75.7% from the free throw line. They average 77.1 pts per game (94th in Division 1) while connecting on 46.3% from the floor.

On defense, the Gaels are forcing 16.5 turnovers per contest while drawing 13.9 personal fouls. They relinquish 31.3% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 93rd in college basketball in points per game from their opponents (65.0). The Gaels are giving up a FG percentage of 41.4% (232 of 560) and they surrender 36.8 rebounds per game as a unit. They are ranked 111th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 131 conceded so far this year.

The last time they took the court, the SMU Mustangs took a loss by a final score of 83-75 against TCU. When talking about cleaning up the glass, SMU permitted TCU to pull down 37 in total (9 offensive). They wrapped up this game 40.0% from behind the 3-point line by connecting on 6 of 15 and finished the game at 19 out of 29 from the free throw line (65.5%). The Mustangs allowed TCU to make 29 of their 62 tries from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 46.8% in the game. In all, the Mustangs ended up going 30 out of 70 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 42.9%. With respect to shooting from beyond the arc, SMU converted 2 out of 14 tries (14.3%). They were able to knock down 13 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 76.5%. TCU was called for 14 fouls in this matchup which got the Mustangs to the free throw line for 17 shots. They also gave up possession of the ball 10 times, while getting 6 steals for the game. The Mustangs collected 28 defensive boards and 11 offensive boards totaling 39 for the matchup.

Zach Nutall ended up being a factor for the Mustangs for this game. He converted 7 out of 20 for the contest for a field goal rate of 35.0%, and tallied 3 rebounds. He scored 20 points in his 32 mins of playing time and had 1 assist for this contest.

SMU has a mark of 3-7 so far this year. As an offensive team, the Mustangs are connecting on 39.7% from the floor, which is ranked 346th in Division 1. SMU has accounted for 668 pts so far this season (66.8 per game) and they collect 38.2 boards per contest. They are dishing out assists 11.4 times per game (325th in the nation) and they are losing possession via turnover 12.4 times per contest. The Mustangs commit 16.7 fouls per game while shooting 69.3% from the free throw line.

The Mustangs defensively are ranked 223rd in college basketball in PPG given up with 70.1. They are able to force 11.1 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 41.7% from the floor (137th in college hoops). The SMU defense concedes 32.7% from downtown (68 of 208) and opponents are making 65.0% of their shots from the charity stripe. They allow 15.2 dimes and 39.8 rebounds per game, which ranks them 324th and 354th in the nation.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Iona

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