East Tennessee State Buccaneers vs Utah State Aggies Prediction, 12/22/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: East Tennessee State Buccaneers vs Utah State Aggies

Date: Friday, December 22, 2023

Location: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan, UT

TV: ESPN+

Dee Glen Smith Spectrum is the site where the Utah State Aggies (11-1) will attempt to beat the East Tennessee State Buccaneers (7-4) on Friday.

The East Tennessee State Buccaneers stepped onto the hardwood against UMKC and walked away with a win by a score of 70-57 in their last contest. With respect to personal fouls, the Buccaneers ended up finishing with 17 while UMKC totaled 19 personal fouls. They also made 8 of 24 tries from three-point range. UMKC went 81.0% from the free throw line by making 17 of their 21 attempts. On top of that, UMKC totaled 44 rebounds (13 offensive, 31 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. UMKC earned 6 assists and had 3 steals for the contest. In relation to defending, East Tennessee State let their opponent shoot 28.6% from the field on 16 out of 56 shooting. They also distributed 11 assists for the contest in addition to forcing 17 turnovers and earning 9 steals. In regard to grabbing rebounds, they compiled 38 with 12 of them being offensive. At the free throw line, the Buccaneers buried 20 of 26 shots for a percentage of 76.9%. East Tennessee State wrapped up the contest with a 33.8% FG percentage (22 out of 65) and knocked down 6 of their 26 three-point attempts.

Ebby Asamoah is someone who was a major contributor in the matchup. He shot 53.3% from the floor and also distributed 1 assist. He played 38 mins played and grabbed 6 rebounds. He walked away with 24 points on 8 out of 15 shooting.

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East Tennessee State enters this one with a record of 7-4 for the season. They average 71.6 points per outing (259th in the nation) on 39.6% from the field. The Buccaneers are shooting 31.3% on shots from distance (90 of 288) and 71.2% from the charity stripe. As a unit, East Tennessee State is snagging 39.5 rebounds per game and has tallied 127 dimes for the year, which ranks 294th in Division 1 in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 12.1 times per game and as a unit are committing 19.1 personal fouls every game.

Defensively, the Buccaneers have forced 14.8 turnovers per game and they draw 17.7 fouls. They currently rank 35th in the nation in allowing assists to the opposition with 111 conceded so far this year. The Buccaneers defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 40.3% (252 of 626) and they relinquish 38.7 rebounds per game as a team. They surrender 30.9% on 3-point shots and they rank 76th in college hoops in points per game from their opponents (66.4).

When they last played, the Utah State Aggies walked away with a victory by a final of 54-53 against San Francisco. The Aggies earned 21 defensive boards and 11 offensive rebounds for a total of 32 for the contest. They turned it over 12 times, while getting 12 steals for the game. San Francisco committed 19 fouls in the matchup which got the Aggies to the charity stripe for 27 shots. They were able to knock down 20 of them for a percentage of 74.1%. In the matter of shooting from 3-point land, Utah State converted 2 of their 21 tries (9.5%). In all, the Aggies finished 16 out of 53 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 30.2%. The Aggies permitted San Francisco to knock down 21 out of their 52 tries from the field which left them shooting 40.4% for the contest. They shot 25.0% from 3-point land by hitting 5 of 20 and ended up shooting 6 out of 10 at the free throw line (60.0%). In regard to cleaning up the glass, Utah State allowed San Francisco to pull down 33 in total (5 offensive).

Ian Martinez ended up having an impact for the Aggies for this game. He buried 5 out of 13 for this contest for a field goal rate of 38.5%, and had 8 rebounds. He earned 20 points in his 33 minutes on the court, but wasn't able to earn an assist.

Utah State has a record of 11-1 for the year. The Aggies commit 16.4 fouls per contest and they shoot 69.2% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 17.9 times per game (21st in college basketball) and they are turning it over 11.9 times per game. Utah State has tallied 977 pts for the year (81.4 per game) and they pull down 38.4 boards per game. When it comes to offense, the Aggies are hitting on 49.9% from the field, which has them ranked 18th in D-1.

The Aggies on the defensive side of the court are 65th in the nation in PPG surrendered with 65.8. They are able to force 14.5 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 42.3% from the floor (171st in college basketball). The Utah State defense concedes 28.7% on shots from beyond the perimeter (71 of 247) and their opponents are converting on 73.3% of their free throw shots. They give up 11.0 assists and 30.2 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 67th and 17th in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take East Tennessee State

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