It will be a battle between Ohio Valley opponents when the Eastern Illinois Panthers (11-13) welcome the Austin Peay Governors (11-15) to Lantz Arena. The game gets underway at 9:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Feb. 10.
The Panthers were victorious over Southeast Missouri State 78-69 on Saturday. Trae Anderson fueled the Panthers, recording 27 points and 12 rebounds to notch his second double-double this season. The Governors are coming off a 76-73 win over Murray State on Saturday. Chris Horton had a good game and claimed his 19th double-double of the season, recording 29 points and 10 rebounds.
Over the last five games, Anderson has really been playing well for the Panthers. During that stretch, he has averaged 18.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and 1.0 block. Horton has also been on fire in the same span, averaging 20.6 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 2.0 steals, and 1.2 blocks while leading the Governors.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Panthers won the first game 87-86. In the loss, Horton had a double-double with 22 points and 15 rebounds.
The Panthers enter the game with records of 11-13 Straight Up (SU) and 10-12 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 2-7-1 ATS over their last 10 games.
On the other side, Austin Peay has a SU record of 11-15 and an ATS record of 8-12-1. The Governors are getting to the foul line at a high rate. Their 422 free throws made ranks 36th in Division I.
Eastern Illinois beat Austin Peay in their most recent meeting this season, but Austin Peay still leads the head-to-head record over their most recent games, 6-4 SU. The Panthers hold the advantage ATS with a record of 6-4. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers, Eastern Illinois held the edge in all three of these categories once in the last five meetings. Austin Peay never did so in those games.
Predictions: SU Winner – APSU, ATS Winner – APSU
Notes
Austin Peay won its last game by a three-point margin. In games decided by a margin of three points or less, Eastern Illinois is 2-0. Austin Peay is 2-2 in close games this season.
Eastern Illinois has an average field goal percentage of 43.8%. Austin Peay is a poor 7-12 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Eastern Illinois Panthers rank lower for their field goal percentage (191st) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (176th), but the Austin Peay Governors have a better FG% ranking (130th) than eFG% ranking (180th).
The Austin Peay Governors rank 99th in offensive rebounds. The Eastern Illinois Panthers rank 290th in the nation in defensive rebounds.
Eastern Illinois has forced an average turnover percentage of 20.0% this season. Austin Peay has a subpar 4-10 record when its TO% is 20.0% or higher.
