The La Salle Explorers (2-10) will attempt to snap their 10-game losing streak when they square off with the Massachusetts Minutemen (7-6) at William D. Mullins Center. The game gets underway at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 5, 2019.
La Salle Explorers vs. Massachusetts Minutemen ATS Prediction
In the Explorers’ last matchup, they were defeated by the Temple Owls, 75-67. Temple out-rebounded La Salle. The Owls had more offensive rebounds (15 vs. five), defensive rebounds (35 vs. 23) and total rebounds (50 vs. 28). Isiah Deas was the top scorer from either team with 23 points on 7-for-19 shooting.
The Minutemen defeated the Massachusetts-Lowell River Hawks in their last outing, 83-75. The Minutemen had a better free throw rate (0.246 vs. 0.186) and had a much better effective field goal percentage (0.557 vs. 0.443). Carl Pierre was the game’s top scorer with 21 points on 9-for-16 shooting from the field.
After the Minutemen won two out of three contests against the Explorers last season, this will be the first matchup of the year between these two teams. In the most recent contest, Massachusetts won 69-67. The Minutemen’s offensive rebounding percentage was their largest advantage over the Explorers. Massachusetts had a rate of 29.0, while La Salle posted a mark of 20.0.
Luwane Pipkins has averaged 0 points over the last five games for Massachusetts.
The high-octane offense of Massachusetts (83rd in the NCAA with an offensive efficiency of 110.4) will go head-to-head against the mid-tier defense of La Salle (309th in the NCAA with a defensive efficiency of 109.9). The Minutemen should have the edge on that end of the court.
La Salle Explorers at Massachusetts Minutemen Pick
Basketball Tip: SU Winner – La Salle, ATS Winner – Massachusetts, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Notes:
Massachusetts ranks 45th in assists per game (15.7) while La Salle ranks 195th (11.7).
The Minutemen rank 176th in rebounds per game (34.9) while the Explorers rank 246th (31.7).
La Salle ranks 11th in three pointers allowed per game (17.8) while Massachusetts ranks 66th (20.7).
The Explorers rank 51st in steals per game (7.8) while the Minutemen rank 66th in steals allowed per game (5.8).
La Salle is 46th in the country with 2.8 blocks allowed per game while Massachusetts is 52nd with 2.8 blocks allowed per game.
Bettings Trends:
The Explorers’ average margin of defeat in their last five games has been 12.6, up from 8.4 for the season.
During their last five games, the Minutemen have scored an average of 82.6 points per game (3.4 above their season average) and allowed an average of 70.4 points per game (5.4 below their season average).
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