Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns vs Marshall Thundering Herd Prediction, 12/30/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns vs Marshall Thundering Herd

Date: Saturday, December 30, 2023

Location: Cam Henderson Center in Huntington, WV

TV: ESPN+

The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (7-5) are on their way to Cam Henderson Center on Saturday where they will attempt to beat the Marshall Thundering Herd (5-8).

The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns stepped onto the hardwood against Rice and notched a win by a score of 84-67 in their last game. When it comes to fouls, the Ragin' Cajuns left the arena with 20 while Rice accounted for 13 fouls. They also buried 11 of 26 tries from long range. Rice ended up going 77.8% when shooting free throws by burying 14 of their 18 shots. On top of that, Rice pulled down 25 rebounds (9 offensive, 16 defensive), but didn't have a block. Rice distributed 12 assists and had 5 steals for this contest. Pertaining to defending, Louisiana allowed 38.2% from the floor on 21 of 55 shooting. They also recorded 17 assists in this matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 12 turnovers and earning 8 steals. Regarding pulling down boards, they compiled 38 with 11 of them being on the offensive end. At the charity stripe, the Ragin' Cajuns buried 11 of 14 tries for a percentage of 78.6%. Louisiana walked away from the game having earned a 49.2% FG percentage (30 of 61) and made 13 out of their 28 shots from 3-point land.

Kobe Julien is one player who came through for the contest. He finished shooting 46.2% from the floor and also distributed 4 dimes. He was on the court for 36 minutes and collected 5 rebounds. He accounted for 19 points on 6 out of 13 shooting.

Get all of our NCAA Basketball Picks

Louisiana enters this matchup with a record of 7-5 on the year. They average 78.4 points per contest (105th in Division 1) while connecting on 47.2% from the field. The Ragin' Cajuns are connecting on 39.0% on shots from 3-point land (113 of 290) and 71.5% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Louisiana is pulling in 33.0 rebounds per game and has 167 dimes so far this season, which ranks 177th in the country in terms of passing. They are giving up possession 11.7 times per contest and as a team they commit 18.4 fouls on a nightly basis.

Defensively, the Ragin' Cajuns are forcing 15.8 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 14.8 fouls. They are 146th in college hoops in allowing assists to the opposition with 146 relinquished for the season. The Ragin' Cajuns defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 45.9% (302 of 658) and they surrender 34.4 boards per contest as a unit. They concede 29.9% on 3-pointers while they are 196th in Division 1 in points per game from their opponents (71.3).

When they last played, the Marshall Thundering Herd went home defeated by a final of 78-69 against UNC Wilmington. Concerning rebounding, Marshall allowed UNC Wilmington to pull down 33 in total (6 on the offensive side). They went 36.4% from downtown by shooting 8 of 22 and ended up going 16 out of 20 at the free throw line (80.0%). The Thundering Herd permitted UNC Wilmington to convert 27 out of 60 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 45.0% for the contest. Overall, the Thundering Herd finished the game shooting 26 out of 64 from the floor which gave them a rate of 40.6%. In terms of shots from distance, Marshall knocked down 7 out of 24 attempts (29.2%). They were able to make 10 of the free throw tries for a clip of 71.4%. UNC Wilmington committed 11 personal fouls in the matchup which got the Thundering Herd to the charity stripe for a total of 14 tries. They coughed up the ball 10 times, while getting 2 steals for this contest. The Thundering Herd were able to pull down 26 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards for a total of 37 for this game.

Kamdyn Curfman ended up being a major contributor for the Thundering Herd for this game. He converted 5 out of 11 for the contest for a field goal rate of 45.5%, and tallied 2 rebounds. He recorded 15 points in his 37 minutes on the hardwood and had 2 dimes for the matchup.

Marshall has a win-loss record of 5-8 so far this year. As an offensive team, the Thundering Herd are hitting on 41.5% from the floor, which is 302nd in college basketball. Marshall has scored 995 pts on the year (76.5 per contest) and they average 41.1 boards per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 14.7 times per game (113th in college hoops) and they are turning it over 12.6 times per game. The Thundering Herd commit 16.5 personal fouls per game and they connect on 71.5% from the free throw line.

The Thundering Herd on defense are ranked 331st in college hoops in points allowed per contest with 78.5. They are able to force 12.8 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 43.8% from the field (241st in the nation). The Marshall defense surrenders 34.7% on shots from beyond the arc (110 of 317) and their opponents are connecting on 70.2% of their free throw attempts. They give up 14.8 assists and 39.8 boards per game, which is ranked 314th and 338th in college hoops.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Louisiana

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here