Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions vs UConn Huskies Prediction, 12/9/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions vs UConn Huskies

Date: Saturday, December 9, 2023

Location: Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT

TV: ESPN+

The Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions (4-6) are on their way to Gampel Pavilion on Saturday where they will take on the UConn Huskies (8-1).

The Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions took the court against Gonzaga and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 111-71 in their last contest. Arkansas-Pine Bluff ended the game with a 26.8% field goal percentage (19 of 71) and knocked down 15 out of their 44 3-point shots. From the charity stripe, the Golden Lions converted 18 of 24 attempts for a percentage of 75.0%. In the matter of pulling down boards, they collected 28 with 7 of them being offensive. They also distributed 15 assists in the game as well as forcing 15 turnovers and getting 5 steals. In relation to defending, Arkansas-Pine Bluff allowed their opponent to shoot 57.0% from the floor on 45 out of 79 shooting. Gonzaga doled out 28 dimes and had 5 steals for the matchup. On top of that, Gonzaga collected 57 boards (16 offensive, 41 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Gonzaga finished the contest at 78.6% at the charity stripe by converting 11 of 14 attempts. They converted 10 of their 24 shots from distance. Concerning personal fouls, the Golden Lions walked away with 17 and Gonzaga accumulated 17 personal fouls.

Joe French is a player who was a major contributor in this matchup. He walked away from this one shooting 42.1% from the field but finished the game without a dime. He saw the court for 34 minutes played and collected 1 board. He walked away with 26 points on 8 out of 19 shooting.

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Arkansas-Pine Bluff steps onto the court with a record of 4-6 on the season. They are averaging 85.6 points per game (21st in the country) while shooting 44.4% from the floor. The Golden Lions are connecting on 37.8% on three-point shots (112 of 296) and 78.3% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Arkansas-Pine Bluff is pulling down 33.9 boards per game and has accumulated 159 dimes for the season, which ranks 17th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 12.4 times per contest and as a squad they commit 18.7 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Golden Lions are able to force 14.9 turnovers every game while drawing 17.4 personal fouls. They are surrendering 33.2% from 3-point land and they are ranked 362nd in the country in points per game from their opponents (88.1). The Golden Lions are giving up a shooting percentage of 49.1% (324 of 660) and they relinquish 40.5 rebounds per game as a basketball team. They rank 363rd in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 198 relinquished for the year.

The last time they took the court, the UConn Huskies got the win with a final of 87-76 against North Carolina. The Huskies were able to pull down 31 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards totaling 39 for this contest. They gave up possession of the ball 6 times, while getting 5 steals in the game. North Carolina was called for 13 personal fouls in this matchup which got the Huskies to the free throw line for 16 attempts. They were able to convert 9 of the free throws for a clip of 56.3%. In terms of three-point shots, UConn buried 10 out of their 31 attempts (32.3%). In all, the Huskies ended up shooting 34 for 66 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 51.5%. The Huskies permitted North Carolina to make 28 of 63 tries from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.4% for the contest. They went 35.0% from beyond the perimeter by going 7 out of 20 and ended up going 13 out of 22 from the free throw line (59.1%). When talking about attacking the glass, UConn allowed North Carolina to get 29 in all (8 offensive).

Cam Spencer pitched in for the Huskies in this contest. He converted 8 of 14 in this matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 57.1%, and had 7 rebounds. He earned 23 points in his 37 mins on the court and had 6 dimes in the game.

UConn has a record of 8-1 on the year. As an offense, the Huskies are connecting on 50.4% from the field, which ranks 18th in the nation. UConn has tallied 773 points on the campaign (85.9 per game) and they snag 41.9 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 18.7 times per game (9th in the country) and they lose possession via turnover 10.0 times per game. The Huskies commit 16.1 personal fouls every game and they shoot 72.3% from the free throw line.

The Huskies on the defensive end are ranked 34th in college hoops in points given up per game with 63.2. They are able to force 12.0 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 40.1% from the field (67th in the nation). The UConn defense concedes 36.9% on shots from distance (58 of 157) and their opponents are knocking down 64.8% of their free throw attempts. They give up 11.3 assists and 28.1 boards per contest, which ranks 96th and 6th in college hoops.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take UConn

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