The La Salle Explorers (5-16) will try to put an end to their eight-game skid when they take on the Davidson Wildcats (13-8) at Belk Arena. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Feb. 10.
The Wildcats enter this game hoping for similar success after beating Duquesne 93-82 on Saturday. Brian Sullivan had 22 points, six rebounds, and three assists for Davidson. The Explorers, meanwhile, are coming off a 79-62 loss at the hands of Rhode Island on Saturday. Cleon Roberts played well for La Salle, accumulating 15 points, five steals, and four rebounds.
Despite a 13-8 Straight Up (SU) record, the Wildcats have not fared well Against The Spread (ATS) with a 6-13-1 record. The Wildcats have one of the most prolific offenses in the entire nation, averaging 80.9 points per game. The Wildcats are an impressive shooting team from the line with a .754 free throw percentage, one of the highest marks in Division I. Few teams in the nation have a higher assist-to-turnover ratio than Davidson, which ranks 12th at 1.56. The Davidson defense is doing better against opposing offenses during the last 10 games. It is allowing an average of 72.3 points per game, well under their season average of 79.7.
In the other locker room, the Explorers head into the game with records of 5-13 ATS and 5-16 SU. La Salle has been playing better lately, averaging 79.9 PPG, significantly more than their season average of 63.3. The Explorers average 73.6 points allowed per game, but have damaged those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 79.8 points per game during that span.
Davidson and La Salle will be facing off in their first head-to-head clash of the season. When they last met the Wildcats were winners, bringing their SU record to 2-1 over La Salle. The Explorers lead the matchup ATS with a record of 2-1.
Predictions: SU Winner – Dav, ATS Winner – Dav
Notes
“Davidson is 4-8-1 ATS in its last 13 games “.
“The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Davidson’s last 7 games “.
“Davidson is 1-4-1 ATS in its last 6 games at home”.
Davidson is an even 5-5 against other teams in its conference, while La Salle is a poor 1-9 against its rivals.
Davidson scores 81.5 points per home game (ranked 53rd). La Salle ranks a poor 113th in points allowed on the road, allowing 73.4 points.
On average, Davidson has 72.6 possessions per game and scores 1.114 points on each possession. La Salle has both fewer possessions (65.9) and scores fewer points during those possessions (.962).
The Davidson Wildcats average an effective field goal percentage of 51.4% this season. The La Salle Explorers are a winless 0-12 when opponents have an eFG% of 51.4% or greater.
On average, the Davidson Wildcats attempt 28.0 three point field goals per game and the La Salle Explorers attempt 24.0. In games where they attempt at least 20 three pointers, Davidson has a winning record of 13-8, while La Salle has a subpar record of 4-13.
The 12th-ranked team in the category, Davidson has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.56 this season. La Salle ranks outside the top 100 at 268th with an A/TO of .92.
La Salle has forced an average turnover percentage of 19.2% this season. Davidson is an even 1-1 when its TO% is 19.2% or higher.
