Rice Owls vs UAB Blazers Prediction, 2/17/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Rice Owls vs UAB Blazers

Date: Thursday, February 17, 2022

Location: Bartow Arena in Birmingham, AL

TV: ESPN+

The UAB Blazers (19-6) will try to defeat the Rice Owls (14-10) at Bartow Arena on Thursday.

The Rice Owls stepped onto the hardwood against North Texas and took a loss by a final of 67-44 in their last contest. Concerning fouls, the Owls left the arena with 14 and North Texas recorded 15 fouls. They also buried 7 of their 19 attempts from three-point range. North Texas finished 66.7% from the free throw line by making 10 of 15 shots. On top of that, North Texas collected 39 rebounds (13 offensive, 26 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. North Texas doled out 11 dimes and had 3 steals in this matchup. With regard to defending, Rice allowed their opponent to shoot 43.1% from the floor on 25 out of 58 shooting. They also dished out 9 assists in this game in addition to forcing 6 turnovers and getting 3 steals. When talking about hauling in rebounds, they earned a total of 27 with 5 of them being of the offensive variety. From the charity stripe, the Owls converted 11 of 12 shots for a percentage of 91.7%. Rice wrapped up the contest having earned a 31.9% FG percentage (15 of 47) and made 3 of 13 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Mylyjael Poteat is someone who came through in this matchup. He finished the game at 66.7% from the field but finished the game without a dime. He saw the court for 24 mins played and also totaled 6 boards. He walked away with 12 points on 4 of 6 shooting.

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Rice comes into this one with a win-loss mark of 14-10 for the season. They average 75.8 points per contest (69th in the nation) while connecting on 46.4% from the field. The Owls are connecting on 37.9% on three-point attempts (227 of 599) and 72.9% from the free throw line. As a team, Rice is pulling in 36.5 rebounds per game and has accounted for 386 dimes for the season, which is 45th in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. They are turning it over 13.0 times per game and as a team they commit 14.0 fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Owls have forced 10.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 16.5 personal fouls. They are giving up 33.2% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 280th in college basketball in PPG allowed (72.8). The Owls defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 43.7% (673 of 1,539) and they surrender 34.5 rebounds per contest as a unit. They rank 252nd in college hoops in giving up assists to the opposition with 335 surrendered for the campaign.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the UAB Blazers walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 81-72 when they played Old Dominion. When talking about attacking the glass, UAB allowed Old Dominion to snag 30 overall (5 on the offensive glass). They shot 28.6% from three-point range by connecting on 4 out of 14 and ended up shooting 25 of 35 from the free throw line (71.4%). The Blazers permitted Old Dominion to make 26 out of 51 tries from the floor which had them at 51.0% in the matchup. Overall, the Blazers went 23 for 56 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 41.1%. When it comes to three-point shots, UAB made 4 out of their 19 tries (21.1%). They were able to knock down 22 of those for a percentage of 84.6%. Old Dominion was called for 19 personal fouls in this matchup which took the Blazers to the charity stripe for a total of 26 tries. They coughed up the ball 10 times, while getting 4 steals for the game. The Blazers were able to pull down 23 defensive boards and 10 offensive boards totaling 33 in the matchup.

Quan Jackson was important for the Blazers in the matchup. He tallied 17 points in his 29 minutes on the hardwood and added 1 assist for the matchup. He converted 7 out of 11 in the matchup for a rate of 63.6%, and had 8 rebounds.

UAB has a win-loss mark of 19-6 this year. The Blazers are committing 16.5 fouls every game and they connect on 74.0% from the free throw line. Their rate of earning assists is at 13.0 times per game (187th in college basketball) and they cough up possession 10.9 times per game. UAB has totaled 2,025 points on the year (81.0 per contest) and they average 38.4 boards per game. On the offensive side of the ball, the Blazers are connecting on 46.4% from the field, which is ranked 61st in the nation.

The UAB defense allows 33.1% on shots from behind the 3-point line (170 of 514) and their opponents are connecting on 71.4% of their free throw attempts. They have given up 11.0 assists and 34.8 rebounds per game, which is 55th and 193rd in the nation. The Blazers on the defensive end are ranked 68th in the nation in points given up per game with 65.1. They are forcing 17.1 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 40.9% from the field (60th in college basketball).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take UAB

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