The Wake Forest Demon Deacons (2-0) face off against the Richmond Spiders (1-1) at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The game gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Nov. 18 and can be seen on ES3.
The Demon Deacons enter this game hoping for similar success after beating Bucknell 90-82 on Sunday. Bryant Crawford was the team’s leading scorer with 21 points on 6-for-11 shooting. The Spiders, meanwhile, are coming off a 108-85 win over Stetson on Sunday. T.J. Cline led the game in scoring by accumulating 27 points on 11-for-16 shooting.
Wake Forest is a small two-point favorite at home against Richmond. The Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at 152 points for this matchup. The Demon Deacons have performed very well early on with a 2-0 record Straight Up (SU) and 1-0 Against The Spread (ATS). The Demon Deacons are one of the best in Division I in terms of free throws made, making an impressive 25.0 per game. The Demon Deacons have a distinct advantage on the boards in this matchup. They are the 14th-ranked rebounding team in Division I, averaging 52.0 per game, while the Spiders rank 265th in the nation with 34.0 per game.
Across the court, the Spiders haven’t been a good bet ATS so far with a record of 0-1 to go along with a 1-1 SU record. They sport the 33rd-ranked scoring offense in the country, averaging 91.5 points per game. Richmond is one of the top three-point shooting teams in the nation, converting 10.0 shots from three-point range per game. Defenses have a tough time accounting for every player when up against the Spiders, who are known for distributing the ball with 21.5 assists per game. Don’t expect Richmond to give away the ball much on offense, where its 9.5 turnovers per game ranks 32nd in the country.
This game marks the first time these teams will play this season. The last time these two played, Wake Forest won, bumping its SU record to 7-3 over the Spiders. The Demon Deacons also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 5-4-1.
Predictions: SU Winner – Rich, ATS Winner – Rich, O/U – Over
Notes
Wake Forest is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games.
Wake Forest is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games at home.
Wake Forest is 14-3 SU in its last 17 games when playing Richmond.
Wake Forest is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against Richmond.
Wake Forest is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Richmond.
Richmond averages 91.5 points per game (ranked 33rd). Wake Forest, on the other hand, allows 77.5 points per game (ranked 251st).
Wake Forest averages 74.5 possessions per game, scoring 1.128 points on each possession. While Richmond averages fewer possessions per game with 72.3, they score more points per possession with 1.266.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons average an effective field goal percentage of 44.3% this season. The Richmond Spiders have split their games this season (1-1) when opponents have an eFG% of 44.3% or greater.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons attempt an average of 16.0 three pointers per game, while the Richmond Spiders attempt 24.0. When they attempt 20 or more three pointers in a game, both Wake Forest and Richmond are undefeated at 1-0.
The Richmond Spiders rank 10th with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.26, while the Wake Forest Demon Deacons rank outside the top 100 at 193rd with an A/TO of .96.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are one of the top rebounding teams in the nation with an average of 52.0 per game (ranked 14th). The Richmond Spiders are outside the top 100 with 34.0 rebounds per game (ranked 265th).
Richmond ranks 205th in offensive rebounds, while Wake Forest ranks at 42nd in defensive rebounds.
Opponents have had an average turnover percentage of 11.4% when playing Wake Forest this season. Richmond is undefeated (1-0) when its TO% is 11.4% or higher.
