Norfolk State Spartans vs Tennessee Volunteers Prediction, 1/2/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Norfolk State Spartans vs Tennessee Volunteers

Date: Tuesday, January 2, 2024

Location: Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN

TV: SEC Network

The Norfolk State Spartans (9-6) are hitting the road to Thompson-Boling Arena on Tuesday where they will play the Tennessee Volunteers (9-3).

The Norfolk State Spartans played South Dakota State and walked away with a win by a score of 84-65 in their last game. When talking about personal fouls, the Spartans finished with 21 while South Dakota State finished the game with 14 personal fouls. They also made 10 out of their 33 tries from distance. South Dakota State ended up shooting 41.2% when shooting free throws by making 7 of their 17 tries. On top of that, South Dakota State pulled down 26 rebounds (9 offensive, 17 defensive), but didn't have a block. South Dakota State doled out 17 assists and had 4 steals for the game. When talking about defending, Norfolk State allowed the other team to shoot 42.1% from the field on 24 out of 57 shooting. They also recorded 15 assists in the game as well as forcing the opposition into 14 turnovers and earning 7 steals. In relation to rebounding, they earned 34 with 5 of them being of the offensive sort. From the charity stripe, the Spartans made 13 of 17 attempts for a rate of 76.5%. Norfolk State walked away from the game with a 58.8% field goal percentage (30 of 51) and made 11 out of their 19 three-point attempts.

Jack Doumbia is one player who was a major factor in the game. He walked away from this one shooting 63.6% from the field but didn't record a dime. He played for 24 mins and also grabbed 2 rebounds. He notched 17 points on 7 of 11 shooting.

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Norfolk State heads into this contest with a record of 9-6 on the campaign. They have an average of 75.7 pts per contest (166th in D-1) while shooting 45.4% from the floor. The Spartans are shooting 35.2% on shots from distance (105 of 298) and 74.2% from the charity stripe. As a team, Norfolk State is pulling down 34.5 boards per game and has earned 180 assists on the campaign, which has them ranked 128th in the country in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 11.3 times per contest and as a unit are committing 20.1 fouls every game.

On the defensive end, the Spartans are forcing 15.9 turnovers every game while drawing 18.4 fouls. They surrender 31.2% on three-point shots and they are ranked 86th in the country in points per game allowed (66.7). The Spartans defense is allowing a FG percentage of 41.2% (320 of 776) and they relinquish 32.8 rebounds per contest as a squad. They are 318th in the country in giving up assists with 188 relinquished on the campaign.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Tennessee Volunteers went home victorious with a score of 65-46 when they faced Tarleton State. The Volunteers were able to snag 26 defensive boards and 12 offensive rebounds totaling 38 for the contest. They turned the ball over 8 times, while getting 1 steal in the matchup. Tarleton State earned 22 fouls in this matchup which got the Volunteers to the charity stripe for a total of 22 shots. They were able to knock down 17 of those for a rate of 77.3%. In the matter of shooting from beyond the arc, Tennessee made 8 of their 25 attempts (32.0%). Overall, the Volunteers walked away from this one shooting 20 for 55 from the field which gave them a rate of 36.4%. The Volunteers permitted Tarleton State to make 18 of their 60 tries from the floor which left them with a shooting percentage of 30.0% for this contest. They finished shooting 9.1% from three-point range by shooting 2 out of 22 and walked away from this one shooting 8 out of 11 from the charity stripe (72.7%). In the matter of how they cleaned up the glass, Tennessee permitted Tarleton State to collect 34 in total (12 on the offensive glass).

Zakai Zeigler ended up having an impact for the Volunteers for this contest. He made 4 out of 8 for this game for a rate of 50.0%, and had 2 rebounds. He tallied 13 points in his 34 mins on the hardwood and accumulated 5 dimes in this contest.

Tennessee has a mark of 9-3 for the campaign. The Volunteers are responsible for committing 17.3 fouls per game and they shoot 76.7% from the charity stripe. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 16.3 times per game (52nd in Division 1) and they are turning it over 10.7 times per game. Tennessee has scored 925 points on the year (77.1 per contest) and they average 39.4 rebounds per contest. When it comes to offense, the Volunteers are connecting on 43.3% from the floor, which is ranked 258th in the country.

The Volunteers defensively are ranked 66th in D-1 in PPG given up with 65.5. They are able to force 12.8 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 37.5% from the floor (12th in college basketball). The Tennessee defense allows 29.2% on shots from beyond the perimeter (82 of 281) and opponents are converting on 67.9% of their free throw shots. They relinquish 11.3 assists and 34.9 rebounds every game, which ranks 84th and 178th in those defensive categories.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Norfolk State

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