The Rhode Island Rams (16-13) and the Massachusetts Minutemen (12-16) will clash at Thomas M. Ryan Center to close out the regular season. Action gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 3 and can be seen on CCS.
The Rams beat Dayton 75-66 in their last game. Jared Terrell led all scorers on the team with 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting. The Minutemen, meanwhile, are coming off a close 85-83 loss against St. Bonaventure in their last game. Trey Davis had a good shooting night, leading the game with 26 points.
Over the last five games, Jabarie Hinds has been on fire for the Minutemen. During that stretch, he has averaged 22.0 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 steal, and 2.4 three-pointers.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Minutemen won the first game 61-56. Despite the loss, Terrell had a standout performance with 23 points, three rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one three-pointer.
The Rams enter the game with records of 16-13 Straight Up (SU) and 11-16 Against The Spread (ATS). The Rhode Island defense has been very good, only giving up 65.2 points per game. The Rams have limited opponents’ efforts from beyond the arc, allowing 5.0 three-pointers made per game. The Rams are the 27th-best team in the country at blocking shots, averaging 5.1 blocks per game.
As for their opponent, Massachusetts has a SU record of 12-16 and an ATS record of 9-15-2. The Minutemen average 77.1 points allowed per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 66.9 points per game during that span.
With the Minutemen’s last win against Rhode Island, their SU record against Rhode Island moves to 8-2 over their most recent meetings. At 5-5, they are even ATS. Rhode Island held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five games, while Massachusetts wasn’t able to do so in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – URI, ATS Winner – URI
Notes
“The total has gone OVER in 6 of Rhode Island’s last 7 games “.
“Rhode Island is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games at home”.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of Rhode Island’s last 6 games at home”.
“Rhode Island is 5-10 ATS in its last 15 games when playing Massachusetts”.
“Rhode Island is 1-8 SU in its last 9 games when playing Massachusetts”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Rhode Island’s last 5 games when playing Massachusetts”.
“Rhode Island is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games when playing at home against Massachusetts”.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of Rhode Island’s last 6 games when playing at home against Massachusetts”.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of Massachusetts’s last 6 games when playing on the road against Rhode Island”.
Massachusetts averages 74.9 points per game, placing the team just 112th in the nation. Rhode Island ranks 28th in points allowed, giving up 65.2 points per game.
Massachusetts lost its last game by a two-point margin. In games decided by a margin of three points or less, Rhode Island is 2-4. Massachusetts is 0-2 in close games this season.
The Massachusetts Minutemen average 72.7 possessions per game and 1.030 points per possession. The Rhode Island Rams earn fewer possessions with 65.4, but they score more points with 1.070.
The Rhode Island Rams average an effective field goal percentage of 50.8% this season. The Massachusetts Minutemen have an underachieving record of 3-12 when opponents have an eFG% of 50.8% or greater.
On average, Rhode Island attempts 18.0 three pointers and Massachusetts attempts 22.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the Rhode Island Rams have a winning 7-3 record while the Massachusetts Minutemen have a poor 7-12 record.
Massachusetts makes 6.6 steals per game. When Rhode Island allows 6 or more steals, the team has an even 7-7 record.
