Temple Owls vs East Carolina Pirates Prediction, 1/28/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Temple Owls vs East Carolina Pirates

Date: Sunday, January 28, 2024

Location: Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum in Greenville, NC

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: Temple (+7)

Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum is the site where the East Carolina Pirates (10-10) will try to defeat the Temple Owls (8-12) on Sunday. Temple opens this game as 7-point dogs. The over/under has been set at 135.5.

The Temple Owls stepped onto the hardwood against South Florida and went home with a loss by a final score of 75-69 in their last game. Temple finished with a 37.7% FG percentage (23 out of 61) and made 11 of their 25 shots from beyond the perimeter. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Owls buried 12 of 18 attempts for a rate of 66.7%. When discussing hauling in boards, they earned 23 with 11 of them being offensive. They also dished out 14 assists for the contest in addition to forcing the opposition into 15 turnovers and having 8 steals. With regard to defending, Temple allowed the other team to shoot 50.0% from the floor on 23 of 46 shooting. South Florida totaled 15 dimes and had 4 steals in this game. On top of that, South Florida collected 32 boards (6 offensive, 26 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. South Florida finished the game at 90.5% when shooting free throws by converting 19 of their 21 shots. They also converted 10 out of their 22 attempts from 3-point land. Regarding fouls, the Owls ended up walking away with 18 and South Florida totaled 17 fouls.

Matteo Picarelli is a player who was a major contributor in this matchup. He finished the game shooting 53.8% from the floor and also recorded 1 assist. He was on the court for 39 mins played and also collected 4 boards. He notched 23 points on 7 out of 13 shooting.

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Temple will enter this matchup with a win-loss record of 8-12 this year. They average 70.5 points per outing (274th in college hoops) while shooting 38.0% from the field. The Owls are connecting on 30.3% on shots from downtown (170 of 561) and 72.5% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Temple is collecting 37.0 boards per contest and is sitting with 226 dimes so far this year, which ranks 298th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. They lose possession by turning the ball over 10.6 times per game and as a group are committing 16.0 fouls per game.

On defense, the Owls have forced 13.4 turnovers every game and they draw 16.9 personal fouls. They relinquish 33.9% on 3-point shots while they are 214th in the country in points per game from their opponents (72.6). The Owls defensively are giving up a shooting percentage of 43.9% (513 of 1,169) and they surrender 39.1 rebounds per contest as a team. They are ranked 319th in college basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 290 surrendered for the campaign.

The last time they took the court, the East Carolina Pirates walked away with a victory by a final of 54-52 when they faced Wichita State. The Pirates snagged 20 defensive boards and 14 offensive boards for a total of 34 for this game. They also turned it over 9 times, while recording 12 steals for the game. Wichita State was called for 13 fouls in this game which got the Pirates to the charity stripe for 8 shots. They were able to convert 3 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 37.5%. When it comes to shots from beyond the perimeter, East Carolina converted 5 out of 14 attempts (35.7%). At the conclusion of this game, the Pirates went 23 for 68 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 33.8%. The Pirates allowed Wichita State to convert 18 out of their 44 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 40.9% for the matchup. They shot 16.7% from distance via 3 of 18 and finished the game at 13 out of 16 at the free throw line (81.3%). In relation to attacking the glass, East Carolina permitted Wichita State to collect 34 in all (6 offensive).

Brandon Johnson was important for the Pirates for the matchup. He totaled 12 points in his 38 mins of playing time and totaled 1 assist for this game. He converted 4 of 8 for the matchup for a rate of 50.0%, and accumulated 7 rebounds.

East Carolina has a record of 10-10 for the campaign. When it comes to offense, the Pirates are shooting 42.4% from the field, which ranks 294th in D-1. East Carolina has scored 1,401 pts so far this season (70.1 per contest) and they grab 35.9 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 11.4 times per game (318th in the country) and they are losing possession via turnover 10.9 times per contest. The Pirates commit 15.9 fouls per contest and they shoot 68.8% from the free throw line.

The Pirates are ranked 100th in college hoops in points per game surrendered with 68.2. They are able to force 13.1 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 43.3% from the field (180th in college hoops). The East Carolina defense surrenders 30.3% on three-point shots (143 of 472) and their opposition makes 73.9% of their shots from the charity stripe. They allow 12.2 assists and 34.8 boards per game, which ranks 123rd and 173rd in those defensive categories.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Temple (+7)

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