SMU Mustangs vs UAB Blazers Prediction, 3/10/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: SMU Mustangs vs UAB Blazers

Date: Sunday, March 10, 2024

Location: Bartow Arena in Birmingham, AL

TV: ESPN+

The UAB Blazers (18-11) are hosting the SMU Mustangs (20-10) at Bartow Arena on Sunday.

The SMU Mustangs faced East Carolina and went home with a win by a final score of 80-77 in their last contest. In reference to fouls, the Mustangs walked away with 20 and East Carolina had 18 fouls. They buried 6 of 16 attempts from downtown. East Carolina finished shooting 70.4% at the free throw line by knocking down 19 of 27 attempts. On top of that, East Carolina grabbed 40 rebounds (12 offensive, 28 defensive), but didn't notch a block. East Carolina totaled 15 assists and had 6 steals for this game. When discussing the defense, SMU allowed the other team to shoot 44.1% from the field on 26 out of 59 shooting. They also dished out 17 assists in this matchup as well as forcing the other team into 16 turnovers and earning 10 steals. With respect to hauling in rebounds, they earned 44 with 19 of them being offensive. From the charity stripe, the Mustangs knocked down 24 of their 29 shots for a rate of 82.8%. SMU wrapped up the game having earned a 32.9% field goal percentage (24 out of 73) and knocked down 8 of their 24 shots from beyond the arc.

Chuck Harris is one guy who had an impact for this contest. He finished shooting 38.5% from the floor and distributed 3 dimes. He played 32 mins and also totaled 2 boards. He finished with 16 points on 5 out of 13 shooting.

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SMU comes into this one with a mark of 20-10 this season. They are turning it over 11.2 times per contest and as a group they commit 16.5 fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, SMU is pulling down 40.3 boards per game and has accounted for 473 dimes on the campaign, which ranks 46th in the country in terms of passing the ball. The Mustangs are connecting on 34.1% on shots beyond the perimeter (227 of 665) and 68.9% from the free throw line. They have an average of 77.1 points per game (82nd in Division 1) on 44.9% from the field.

Defensively, the Mustangs are forcing 13.2 turnovers per contest while drawing 15.1 fouls. They are surrendering 30.8% on 3-pointers and they rank 61st in the nation in points per game from their opponents (67.4). The Mustangs defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 40.6% (713 of 1,757) and they concede 34.7 boards per contest as a group. They currently rank 232nd in college basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 403 relinquished for the campaign.

In their last game, the UAB Blazers went home victorious with a score of 100-72 when they played Temple. When talking about attacking the glass, UAB permitted Temple to get 17 in total (1 on the offensive side). They finished 38.1% from three-point range via 8 of 21 and ended up shooting 16 out of 24 at the charity stripe (66.7%). The Blazers allowed Temple to convert 24 out of 50 attempts from the floor which had them sitting at 48.0% for this game. When the game finished, the Blazers shot 37 for 61 from the floor which gave them a rate of 60.7%. With respect to shooting from downtown, UAB buried 10 out of 18 attempts (55.6%). They were able to make 16 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 66.7%. Temple had 17 fouls in the matchup which got the Blazers to the charity stripe for a total of 24 tries. They coughed up the ball 7 times, while earning 6 steals for this contest. The Blazers corralled 30 defensive boards and 9 offensive boards totaling 39 in this game.

Christian Coleman pitched in for the Blazers in the game. He totaled 19 points in his 23 minutes on the hardwood and added 2 dimes for the contest. He knocked down 6 out of 11 for the contest giving him a rate of 54.5%, and had 7 rebounds.

UAB has a record of 18-11 so far this season. The Blazers commit 15.8 fouls every game and they connect on 75.1% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 13.3 times per game (165th in D-1) and they are losing possession via turnover 12.1 times per game. UAB has totaled 2,222 points for the year (76.6 per contest) and they collect 37.9 rebounds per contest. As an offensive team, the Blazers are hitting on 44.5% from the field, which ranks them 198th in the country.

The UAB defense gives up 35.0% on shots from behind the 3-point line (222 of 634) and opponents are connecting on 72.4% of their free throw attempts. They have surrendered 13.1 dimes and 34.9 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is ranked 200th and 189th in the country. The Blazers defensively are ranked 293rd in college basketball in PPG given up with 76.0. They are able to force 11.7 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 44.9% from the field (254th in college basketball).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take UAB

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