UAB Blazers vs Rice Owls Prediction, 1/8/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UAB Blazers vs Rice Owls

Date: Saturday, January 8, 2022

Location: Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, TX

TV: ESPN+

The Rice Owls (7-5) are hosting the UAB Blazers (12-3) at Tudor Fieldhouse on Saturday.

The UAB Blazers faced off with UTSA and went home with a win by a final score of 87-59 in their last game. UAB walked away from the contest having earned a 49.2% FG percentage (32 of 65) and made 10 of 21 shots from beyond the perimeter. When they shot from the free throw line, the Blazers made 13 of their 17 tries for a percentage of 76.5%. When talking about pulling down boards, they earned 40 with 15 of them being offensive. They also distributed 16 assists in this matchup in addition to forcing the opposition into 11 turnovers and earning 9 steals. In reference to the defense, UAB allowed their opponent to shoot 34.9% from the field on 22 of 63 shooting. UTSA doled out 8 assists and had 4 steals for this contest. On top of that, UTSA totaled 27 rebounds (10 offensive, 17 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. UTSA finished shooting 68.4% from the free throw line by knocking down 13 of 19 attempts. They also buried 2 of their 15 attempts from distance. Concerning personal fouls, the Blazers ended up with 16 while UTSA recorded 14 personal fouls.

KJ Buffen is one player who was important for this game. He shot 66.7% from the field and also totaled 1 assist. He saw the court for 29 mins and snagged 9 rebounds. He scored 20 points on 8 of 12 shooting.

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UAB will enter this matchup with a win-loss mark of 12-3 for the year. They are turning it over 11.4 times per contest and as a unit are committing 16.6 fouls every game. As a team, UAB is collecting 39.6 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 210 dimes this year, which has them ranked 72nd in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Blazers are connecting on 36.4% on shots from downtown (120 of 330) and 69.6% from the charity stripe. They average 82.1 points per contest (21st in college basketball) while shooting 46.7% from the floor.

When they are on defense, the Blazers have forced 19.3 turnovers per game and they draw 15.7 fouls. They are relinquishing 33.0% on three-point shots while they are 33rd in college basketball in opponents points per game (60.9). The Blazers defense is giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 38.5% (324 of 841) and they surrender 35.6 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They rank 135th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 153 conceded so far this season.

In their last game, the Rice Owls took a loss by a final score of 75-43 when they played North Texas. When talking about how they cleaned up the glass, Rice allowed North Texas to collect 51 in total (25 offensive). They went 32.3% from three-point range by hitting 10 out of 31 and ended up going 7 of 12 from the free throw line (58.3%). The Owls permitted North Texas to make 29 of 74 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 39.2% in this game. Overall, the Owls walked away from this one shooting 14 for 44 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 31.8%. When it comes to 3-pointers, Rice made 3 of 14 attempts (21.4%). They were able to bury 12 of the free throw tries for a clip of 48.0%. North Texas committed 23 fouls for this contest which got the Owls to the charity stripe for 25 tries. They also gave up possession of the ball 10 times, while getting 4 steals for this game. The Owls snagged 20 defensive boards and 5 offensive rebounds for a total of 25 for this contest.

Quincy Olivari pitched in for the Owls in the matchup. He earned 8 points in his 25 minutes on the hardwood, but wasn't able to notch an assist. He converted 3 out of 7 for the contest giving him a field goal percentage of 42.9%, and totaled 3 rebounds.

Rice has a win-loss mark of 7-5 on the campaign. As an offense, the Owls are connecting on 46.6% from the floor, which is 74th in the nation. Rice has accumulated 933 pts on the campaign (77.8 per game) and they pull in 37.3 boards per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 16.0 times per game (51st in college basketball) and they are losing possession via turnover 14.6 times per game. The Owls have committed 16.3 fouls every game and they shoot 69.6% from the charity stripe.

The Owls are ranked 305th in college basketball in PPG given up with 74.3. They are able to force 10.2 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 42.5% from the floor (198th in D-1). The Rice defense gives up 31.3% on 3-pointers (84 of 268) and their opponents are converting on 71.5% of their free throw shots. They surrender 13.1 dimes and 35.0 boards per game, which is ranked 218th and 198th in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Rice

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