The East Tennessee State Buccaneers head to The Pavilion to take on the No. 11 Villanova Wildcats. Action gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Friday, Nov. 20 and can be seen on FS2.
The Wildcats won big over Nebraska 87-63 on Tuesday. With 17 points and 10 rebounds, Daniel Ochefu recorded his second double-double of the season. The Buccaneers are coming off a 103-90 win against Green Bay on Tuesday. Ge’Lawn Guyn was the game’s top scorer, accounting for 26 points on 8-for-17 shooting.
Villanova is a considerable 23-point favorite at home and the Over/Under (O/U) for this matchup is set at 162 points. The Wildcats have performed very well early on with a 2-0 record Straight Up (SU) and 1-0 Against The Spread (ATS). The Wildcats have no trouble scoring as they rank 43rd in the nation in offense with 89.0 points per game. Villanova has the 24th-most assists in Division I, averaging 20.0 per game. Not making mistakes with the ball is a staple of the Villanova offense, which averages just 10.0 turnovers per game.
Over on the other bench, the Buccaneers are clearly doing something right with a 2-0 record SU and 1-0 ATS so far. East Tennessee State is one of the top foul-shooting teams in the nation, hitting .850 of their shots from the line. Switching gears to the East Tennessee State defense, the Buccaneers allow very few three-pointers on defense with 5.0 given up per game. The Buccaneers have established a reputation of cleaning up the defensive glass with 34.5 defensive rebounds per game, making them one of the top teams in the nation.
Villanova and East Tennessee State will be facing off for their first head-to-head game in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – Vill, ATS Winner – EastTn, O/U – Over
Notes
Villanova is 24-1 SU in its last 25 games at home.
East Tennessee State is one of the top-scoring teams, averaging 105.0 points per game (ranked fourth). Villanova allows 58.5 points per game (ranked 35th).
The Villanova Wildcats rank 47th for their offensive rating of 120.4. The East Tennessee State Buccaneers have a defensive rating of 90.9 (ranked 94th).
East Tennessee State beats Villanova in both possessions per game and points per possession. The Buccaneers average 80.7 possessions and 1.301 points per possession, while the Wildcats average 73.9 possessions with 1.204 points per possession.
This season, Villanova has averaged 33.0 three pointers and East Tennessee State has averaged 24.0. When Villanova and East Tennessee State attempt at least 20 three pointers, both teams are undefeated with records of 2-0.
The 12th-ranked team in the category, Villanova has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.00 this season. East Tennessee State ranks 70th with an A/TO of 1.41.
Villanova ranks 75th in rebounds per game with 43.0 and East Tennessee State ranks 32nd with 46.5 rebounds per game.
East Tennessee State ranks 142nd in offensive rebounds, while Villanova ranks at 55th in defensive rebounds.
