Bellarmine Knights vs Colorado Buffaloes Prediction, 12/21/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Bellarmine Knights vs Colorado Buffaloes

Date: Saturday, December 21, 2024

Location: CU Events Center in Boulder, CO

TV: ESPN+

The Colorado Buffaloes (8-2) will go up against the Bellarmine Knights (3-8) at CU Events Center on Saturday.

The Bellarmine Knights faced off with Ball State and ended up losing by a score of 86-82 in their last contest. Bellarmine ended the game having earned a 47.5% field goal percentage (29 out of 61) and made 11 out of their 29 3-point shots. At the charity stripe, the Knights buried 13 of 15 shots for a percentage of 86.7%. Regarding hauling in boards, they earned a total of 26 with 11 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 21 assists in the game as well as creating 8 turnovers and earning 6 steals. In the matter of the defense, Bellarmine let their opponent shoot 54.2% from the floor on 26 of 48 shooting. Ball State totaled 13 dimes and had 8 steals in this matchup. On top of that, Ball State grabbed 25 rebounds (6 offensive, 19 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Ball State finished 75.0% at the free throw line by knocking down 24 of their 32 attempts. They converted 10 of 19 attempts from distance. Regarding personal fouls, the Knights left the arena with 20 and Ball State accumulated 16 personal fouls.

Billy Smith is a guy who was a factor for the game. He accumulated 33 points on 11 of 15 shooting. He played for 38 minutes and grabbed 5 rebounds. He ended up shooting 73.3% from the floor and earned 2 assists.

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Bellarmine will take the court with a mark of 3-8 this year. They turn it over 13.8 times per contest and as a squad are committing 16.1 personal fouls per contest. As a unit, Bellarmine is pulling down 31.7 boards per game and has 182 assists for the campaign, which is 77th in college in terms of passing the rock. The Knights are hitting 37.5% on shots from distance (112 of 299) and 82.2% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 76.0 pts per game (188th in the nation) on 47.9% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Knights are able to force 10.0 turnovers per contest and they draw 15.7 personal fouls. They are surrendering 38.7% on 3-point shots while they are 332nd in college in points per game allowed (78.7). The Knights defense is allowing an opponent FG percentage of 47.0% (307 of 653) and they relinquish 31.4 boards per game as a group. They are currently ranked 195th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 147 relinquished for the season.

When they last played, the Colorado Buffaloes walked away with a victory by a final of 81-70 when they played South Dakota State. The Buffaloes corralled 24 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards totaling 33 in the game. They also coughed up the ball 10 times, while getting 7 steals in the game. South Dakota State earned 17 fouls in this contest which took the Buffaloes to the free throw line for 19 attempts. They were able to knock down 18 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 94.7%. In terms of 3-point attempts, Colorado buried 7 of 24 tries (29.2%). When the game finished, the Buffaloes walked away from this one shooting 28 for 55 from the field which had them sitting at 50.9%. The Buffaloes permitted South Dakota State to make 25 of 58 attempts from the field which had them shooting 43.1% for the game. They went 40.7% from beyond the perimeter by going 11 of 27 and finished the contest at 9 out of 13 from the charity stripe (69.2%). In reference to rebounding, Colorado allowed South Dakota State to grab 24 overall (7 on the offensive side).

Julian Hammond III ended up being important for the Buffaloes in this contest. He buried 8 of 14 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 57.1%, and added 3 rebounds. He racked up 23 points in his 28 minutes on the court and had 7 dimes in the game.

Colorado has a mark of 8-2 on the campaign. The Buffaloes are committing 14.9 fouls every game and they hit 76.3% from the free throw line. They are earning an assist 16.5 times per contest (58th in college) and they cough up possession 14.6 times per contest. Colorado has scored 765 pts this year (76.5 per game) and they average 37.2 rebounds per contest. As an offense, the Buffaloes are connecting on 47.3% from the floor, which is ranked 88th in the nation.

The Buffaloes defensively are ranked 142nd in the country in points per game surrendered with 69.7. They are able to force 11.3 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 41.4% from the field (106th in college). The Colorado defense concedes 31.4% on 3-point shots (75 of 239) and their opponents are knocking down 74.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They have allowed 12.3 assists and 32.0 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 127th and 67th in those defensive categories.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Bellarmine

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