Oakland Golden Grizzlies vs North Carolina State Wolfpack Prediction, 3/23/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Oakland Golden Grizzlies vs NC State Wolfpack

Date: Saturday, March 23, 2024

Location: PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: TBS

Odds/Point Spread: Oakland (+6)

PPG Paints Arena is where the NC State Wolfpack (23-14) will try to defeat the Oakland Golden Grizzlies (24-11) on Saturday in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament. Oakland is 6-point dogs. The over/under comes in at 147.5.

The Oakland Golden Grizzlies took the court against Kentucky and went home with a win by a final score of 80-76 in their last contest. When it comes to personal fouls, the Golden Grizzlies ended up with 18 and Kentucky finished the game with 18 personal fouls. They also converted 9 of 28 attempts from distance. Kentucky went 75.0% from the free throw line by burying 15 of 20 tries. Additionally, Kentucky had 38 boards (10 offensive, 28 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Kentucky distributed 17 assists and had 2 steals for the matchup. In relation to the defense, Oakland allowed their opponent to shoot 42.6% from the field on 26 of 61 shooting. They also doled out 16 assists for the contest while forcing 11 turnovers and having 5 steals. Regarding hauling in boards, they collected 39 with 13 of them being of the offensive variety. At the charity stripe, the Golden Grizzlies converted 13 of their 23 shots for a percentage of 56.5%. Oakland wrapped up the game having earned a 41.3% FG percentage (26 out of 63) and knocked down 15 out of their 31 3-pointers.

Jack Gohlke is a guy who was a contributor for the contest. He finished the contest at 50.0% from the floor but wasn't able to get a dime. He played for 36 minutes played and also grabbed 2 boards. He left the arena with 32 points on 10 of 20 shooting.

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Oakland steps onto the court with a record of 24-11 on the season. They average 76.5 points per outing (93rd in the nation) on 44.9% from the floor. The Golden Grizzlies are hitting 35.6% on three-point shots (306 of 860) and 75.2% from the free throw line. As a team, Oakland is pulling in 35.9 rebounds per game and is sitting with 509 dimes for the season, which has them ranked 52nd in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. They cough up possession 11.1 times per contest and as a squad they commit 15.2 personal fouls per contest.

On the defensive end, the Golden Grizzlies are forcing 11.3 turnovers every game while drawing 16.5 fouls. They are surrendering 33.8% on shots from distance while they are 221st in college hoops in opponents points per game (73.0). The Golden Grizzlies defense is giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 43.7% (922 of 2,111) and they relinquish 34.3 rebounds per game as a team. They are ranked 362nd in the nation in allowing assists to the opposition with 576 surrendered this season.

When they last played, the NC State Wolfpack took home the win by a final score of 80-67 against Texas Tech. In reference to cleaning the glass, North Carolina State allowed Texas Tech to collect 30 in all (9 offensive). They shot 22.6% from behind the 3-point line by going 7 of 31 and ended up going 12 of 14 at the free throw line (85.7%). The Wolfpack permitted Texas Tech to knock down 24 of their 62 attempts from the field which gave them a rate of 38.7% in this matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Wolfpack ended up shooting 27 out of 53 from the field which gave them a rate of 50.9%. In relation to three-point attempts, North Carolina State made 5 of their 13 tries (38.5%). They were able to bury 21 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 80.8%. Texas Tech committed 20 fouls for the contest which got the Wolfpack to the charity stripe for a total of 26 shots. They gave up possession 10 times, while recording 8 steals in the game. The Wolfpack earned 23 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 30 in this game.

Ben Middlebrooks ended up having an impact for the Wolfpack for the matchup. He made 6 of 8 in this contest for a field goal rate of 75.0%, and tallied 4 rebounds. He recorded 21 points in his 23 mins on the hardwood and had 1 assist in this game.

North Carolina State has a mark of 23-14 this year. As an offensive unit, the Wolfpack are connecting on 45.1% from the floor, which has them ranked 143rd in Division 1. North Carolina State has accounted for 2,829 pts on the year (76.5 per game) and they snag 34.9 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 12.9 times per contest (201st in the nation) and they are turning it over 9.6 times per contest. The Wolfpack commit 16.3 personal fouls per contest while shooting 73.6% from the charity stripe.

The North Carolina State defense concedes 34.3% from downtown (266 of 776) and opponents are making 73.5% of their free throw attempts. They have relinquished 13.0 dimes and 36.0 boards per contest, which ranks 189th and 254th in college hoops. The Wolfpack on the defensive side of the court are 204th in college basketball in points allowed per game with 72.5. They are able to force 12.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 44.2% from the field (214th in college basketball).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take North Carolina State (-6)

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