Pacific Tigers vs St. Mary's Gaels Prediction, 12/28/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pacific Tigers vs St. Mary's Gaels

Date: Saturday, December 28, 2024

Location: University Credit Union Pavilion in Moraga, CA

TV: ESPN+

The Pacific Tigers (5-9) are traveling to University Credit Union Pavilion on Saturday where they will take on the St. Mary's Gaels (10-3).

The Pacific Tigers faced off with Idaho and ended up losing by a score of 95-72 in their last contest. When it comes to fouls, the Tigers walked away with 6 while Idaho totaled 10 fouls. They also made 15 out of their 34 shots from beyond the perimeter. Idaho finished shooting 100.0% at the charity stripe by knocking down 6 of 6 attempts. Additionally, Idaho grabbed 37 rebounds (10 offensive, 27 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Idaho doled out 24 dimes and had 5 steals in this contest. When it comes to the defense, Pacific allowed the other team to go 58.7% from the floor on 37 out of 63 shooting. They also recorded 17 dimes in this matchup while forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and having 3 steals. In relation to hauling in boards, they compiled 23 with 9 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Tigers knocked down 7 of 9 shots for a percentage of 77.8%. Pacific wrapped up the game having earned a 42.2% field goal percentage (27 out of 64) and knocked down 11 of their 29 three-point shots.

Elias Ralph is someone who played a role for the game. He finished 44.4% from the field and distributed 2 assists. He was on the hardwood for 37 minutes and also pulled down 7 rebounds. He accounted for 18 points on 8 of 18 shooting.

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Pacific comes into this game with a record of 5-9 on the campaign. They have an average of 71.6 pts per game (271st in Division 1) while shooting 43.2% from the field. The Tigers are shooting 28.6% on shots from 3-point land (91 of 318) and 72.0% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Pacific is snagging 38.6 boards per contest and has accumulated 204 assists on the season, which is 61st in the country in terms of passing the ball. They are turning it over 12.2 times per contest and as a unit are committing 18.4 fouls per game.

On defense, the Tigers are forcing 10.4 turnovers per game while drawing 18.2 fouls. They concede 32.3% on 3-point shots and they rank 214th in the country in PPG allowed (72.3). The Tigers are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 42.9% (351 of 819) and they surrender 34.3 boards per contest as a squad. They are ranked 326th in D-1 in giving up assists with 201 relinquished this season.

The last time they took the court, the St. Mary's Gaels took a loss by a score of 75-68 when they faced Utah State. In reference to how they cleaned up the glass, St. Mary's permitted Utah State to snag 29 in total (4 on the offensive side). They went 35.3% from three-point range by going 6 of 17 and finished the game at 9 of 11 from the free throw line (81.8%). The Gaels allowed Utah State to make 30 out of 51 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 58.8% in the game. When the final whistle blew, the Gaels finished 24 for 54 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 44.4%. When talking about shots from downtown, St. Mary's converted 10 out of 25 attempts (40.0%). They were able to knock down 10 of the free throw tries for a clip of 52.6%. Utah State was called for 15 personal fouls for the game which got the Gaels to the free throw line for a total of 19 tries. They also turned the ball over 12 times, while recording 9 steals for this contest. The Gaels snagged 16 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 25 for the game.

Mitchell Saxen pitched in for the Gaels in this contest. He tallied 18 points in his 34 mins of playing time and had 4 assists in this contest. He buried 7 of 11 for the contest for a field goal rate of 63.6%, and tallied 6 rebounds.

St. Mary's has a win-loss record of 10-3 this year. On the offensive side of the ball, the Gaels are connecting on 45.5% from the field, which is 163rd in college hoops. St. Mary's has scored 979 pts for the season (75.3 per contest) and they average 40.7 rebounds per game. They are getting an assist 16.1 times per contest (76th in college) and they turn it over 11.4 times per game. The Gaels are responsible for committing 15.8 fouls per contest while shooting 67.4% from the charity stripe.

The Gaels on the defensive side of the court are 38th in college in points per game surrendered with 64.6. They are forcing their opponents into 12.1 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 40.9% from the field (86th in the country). The St. Mary's defense surrenders 33.1% on shots from beyond the perimeter (82 of 248) and their opponents are making 75.1% of their free throw attempts. They have allowed 12.9 assists and 31.1 boards on a nightly basis, which is 176th and 40th in college.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Pacific

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