Central Connecticut Blue Devils vs UMass Minutemen Prediction, 12/4/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Central Connecticut Blue Devils vs UMass Minutemen

Date: Wednesday, December 4, 2024

Location: Mullins Center in Amherst, MA

TV: ESPN+

Mullins Center is the location where the UMass Minutemen (3-5) will attempt to defeat the Central Connecticut Blue Devils (4-3) on Wednesday.

The Central Connecticut Blue Devils faced UMass Lowell and took home the win by a score of 69-67 in their last game. Regarding personal fouls, the Blue Devils finished with 15 and UMass Lowell finished the game with 12 personal fouls. They converted 3 out of their 13 attempts from distance. UMass Lowell ended up going 70.0% at the free throw line by knocking down 14 of their 20 tries. Additionally, UMass Lowell pulled down 33 rebounds (9 offensive, 24 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. UMass Lowell recorded 12 dimes and had 9 steals in this contest. With respect to defense, Central Connecticut allowed 44.6% from the field on 25 of 56 shooting. They also doled out 15 assists in this matchup in addition to creating 15 turnovers and earning 11 steals. With respect to rebounding, they earned a total of 27 with 5 of them being offensive. From the charity stripe, the Blue Devils converted 12 of 17 tries for a rate of 70.6%. Central Connecticut finished having earned a 49.1% field goal percentage (26 out of 53) and made 5 out of their 15 shots from 3-point land.

Darin Smith Jr. is one guy who was a contributor in the game. He finished the contest at 83.3% from the floor but didn't record a dime. He saw the court for 23 mins and snagged 2 boards. He notched 14 points on 5 out of 6 shooting.

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Central Connecticut heads into this matchup with a mark of 4-3 on the season. They turn the ball over 10.4 times per game and as a basketball team they commit 11.4 fouls per game. As a team, Central Connecticut is snagging 33.4 boards per contest and has racked up 94 assists on the campaign, which ranks 283rd in college hoops in terms of passing the rock. The Blue Devils are shooting 32.2% on shots from 3-point land (47 of 146) and 72.0% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 70.6 points per outing (281st in college hoops) while going 45.5% from the field.

On defense, the Blue Devils are able to force 13.4 turnovers every game while drawing 12.3 personal fouls. They surrender 31.1% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they rank 78th in college basketball in points per game from their opponents (66.3). The Blue Devils defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 44.1% (179 of 406) and they concede 34.4 rebounds per contest as a group. They are ranked 129th in college basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 92 surrendered so far this year.

The last time they took the court, the UMass Minutemen got the win with a final of 80-68 when they played NJIT. The Minutemen were able to pull down 21 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards totaling 32 for the contest. They gave up possession of the ball 8 times, while recording 6 steals for the matchup. NJIT committed 23 personal fouls in this matchup which got the Minutemen to the free throw line for 28 tries. They were able to make 17 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 60.7%. In regard to shooting from beyond the arc, UMass made 3 of 17 attempts (17.6%). Overall, the Minutemen finished shooting 30 for 60 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 50.0%. The Minutemen permitted NJIT to make 20 of 58 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 34.5% for this game. They wrapped up this game 27.3% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 6 of 22 and finished the game at 22 of 28 from the free throw line (78.6%). In reference to how they rebounded, UMass allowed NJIT to get 33 in all (14 on the offensive glass).

Daniel Rivera ended up being a factor for the Minutemen in the matchup. He tallied 16 points in his 36 minutes on the court and added 1 assist in this matchup. He buried 6 out of 11 for the matchup for a field goal percentage of 54.5%, and totaled 11 rebounds.

UMass has a mark of 3-5 for the campaign. As an offensive unit, the Minutemen are shooting 41.8% from the field, which has them ranked 296th in the country. UMass has accumulated 590 pts on the campaign (73.8 per contest) and they collect 40.0 boards per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 13.8 times per game (209th in college basketball) and they turn it over 11.5 times per contest. The Minutemen have committed 18.3 fouls per contest and they hit 63.7% from the charity stripe.

The UMass defense allows 34.6% on shots from beyond the perimeter (64 of 185) and their opposition makes 71.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 14.4 assists and 38.0 boards per game, ranking them 274th and 308th in the nation. The Minutemen are ranked 275th in Division 1 in points per game surrendered with 75.1. They are forcing their opponents into 12.4 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 42.5% from the floor (185th in Division 1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take UMass

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