Big Sky foes will collide when the Eastern Washington Eagles (9-10) challenge the Portland State Vikings (7-10) at Reese Court. Action begins at 9:05 pm ET on Thursday, Jan. 28.
The Eagles are hoping to rebound after their 74-69 loss to Montana in their last matchup. Despite the loss, Venky Jois earned his fifth double-double this season with 20 points and 10 rebounds. The Vikings, meanwhile, are coming off an 81-63 win against Sacramento State in their last game. Cameron Forte claimed his fifth double-double of the season with 26 points and 12 rebounds.
Forte has been hot for the Vikings, averaging 17.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 0.6 steals over the past five games.
Eastern Washington is a seven-point favorite against Portland State and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at 156 points. The Eagles have gone 9-10 Straight Up (SU) and 7-7-1 Against The Spread (ATS). The Eagles have no trouble scoring as they rank 35th in the nation in offense with 80.8 points per game. The Eagles are one of the best in Division I in terms of field-goal percentage, shooting an impressive .389 from beyond the arc. Eastern Washington’s three-point defense can be considered one of the best in the nation, allowing just 5.0 three-pointers per game.
Over on the other bench, the Vikings have 7-10 SU and 5-7 ATS records. The Vikings are an unselfish team with an average of 17.5 assists per game, ranking 17th in Division I.
These conference foes will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their most recent meeting a season ago, Portland State came out on top, bumping its SU record over their most recent meetings to 7-3. The Vikings also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. Portland State held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers one time, while Eastern Washington was never able to do so in their most recent five games.
Predictions: SU Winner – PorSt, ATS Winner – PorSt, O/U – Over
Notes
Eastern Washington is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Eastern Washington’s last 6 games when playing Portland State.
Eastern Washington is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Portland State.
Eastern Washington is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Portland State.
Eastern Washington is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Portland State.
Eastern Washington averages 80.8 points per game (ranked 35th). Portland State, on the other hand, allows 74.5 points per game (ranked 244th).
In its last game, Portland State won by a margin of 18 points. Eastern Washington is 4-2 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Portland State has a 4-1 record in blowouts.
The Portland State Vikings average 72.0 possessions per game and 1.051 points per possession. The Eastern Washington Eagles earn fewer possessions with 69.0, but they score more points with 1.172.
The Eastern Washington Eagles have one of the best effective field goal percentages this season, ranking sixth in the country with an eFG% of 57.9%. When their opponents record a similar or higher eFG%, the Portland State Vikings are winless with a 0-3 record.
On average, Eastern Washington attempts 26.0 three pointers and Portland State attempts 18.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the Eastern Washington Eagles have an 8-10 record while the Portland State Vikings are even at 3-3.
Portland State ranks 42nd in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.37. Eastern Washington is ranked lower at 155th with an A/TO of 1.09.
Eastern Washington has forced an average turnover percentage of 17.4% this season. Portland State has an underachieving 1-8 record when its TO% is 17.4% or higher.
