The No.6-seeded Belmont Bruins play the No.3-seeded Georgia Bulldogs in the first round of the NIT tournament at Stegeman Coliseum. The game begins at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Mar. 16 and will air on ES2 and ES3.
The Bulldogs are hoping for a better outcome after their 93-80 loss to Kentucky in the 4 of the Southeastern tournament. J.J. Frazier had a solid performance for Georgia, finishing with 19 points, five assists, and two rebounds. The Bruins, meanwhile, are coming off a close 97-96 loss against Austin Peay in the 3 of the Ohio Valley tournament. Evan Bradds had a game-high 32 points.
In terms of eFG%, this game will match strength against strength when the Bruins have possession. Their upper-echelon offense is ranked third in the nation in that metric at 58.6%, while Georgia is 11th-best in the nation in eFG% defense (44.7%).
The Bulldogs have gone 19-13 Straight Up (SU) and 18-14 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 3-7 ATS over their last 10 games. The Bulldogs have a distinct advantage on the boards in this matchup. They are the 46th-ranked rebounding team in Division I, averaging 39.2 per game, while the Bruins rank 255th in the nation with 34.7 per game. Turning to the defensive end, the Bulldogs prevent teams from making three-pointers, ranking 38th in the nation with a .327 opponent field-goal percentage from three-point range.
On the other side, the Bruins have 20-11 SU and 13-16-1 ATS records.
This game marks the first time Georgia and Belmont have played one another in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – UGa, ATS Winner – UGa
Notes
“Georgia is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games at home”.
“Georgia is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home”.
“Georgia is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games “.
“Georgia is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 7 of Georgia’s last 8 games “.
The Belmont Bruins rank 33rd for their offensive rating of 113.8. The Georgia Bulldogs have a defensive rating of 101.7 (ranked 68th).
Belmont has the sixth-ranked average field goal percentage at 49.5%. Georgia has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage (0-3).
On average, Georgia attempts 17.0 three pointers and Belmont attempts 28.0. Both teams have winning records when they have 20 or more three point attempts. The Georgia Bulldogs sit at 7-4 and the Belmont Bruins are 18-11.
Belmont ranks 87th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.21. Georgia is ranked lower at 271st with an A/TO of .92.
Georgia, the 46th-ranked team in rebounding, register an average of 39.2 rebounds per game. Belmont does worse, ranked 255th with 34.7.
On average, Georgia makes 4.9 steals per game. Belmont has a solid 18-11 record when it gives up at least 4 steals.
