The North Texas Mean Green welcome the Southern Illinois Salukis to The Super Pit. The game gets underway at 6:00 pm ET on Saturday, Dec. 5.
The Mean Green are hoping to rebound after their 90-67 loss to UT Arlington on Thursday. Deckie Johnson finished with 16 points to lead the team. The Salukis, meanwhile, are coming off a 74-50 win over Southeast Missouri State on Wednesday. Sean O’Brien played well and claimed his third double-double of the season, registering 22 points and 11 rebounds.
North Texas, a seven-point underdog, will look to capitalize at home against Southern Illinois. Oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 147 points. The Mean Green start the season off cold Against The Spread (ATS) with a 0-5 record, while sporting a 2-5 Straight Up (SU) record. North Texas has consistently been near the top of the nation in terms of field goal percentage, currently ranking 31st in the nation with a FG% of .493.
Over on the other bench, the Salukis have records of 3-3 ATS and 7-1 SU.
This game will be the first meeting for North Texas and Southern Illinois in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – SIU, ATS Winner – SIU, O/U – Over
Notes
North Texas is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games.
North Texas is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games at home.
Southern Illinois averages 79.1 points per game (ranked 99th). North Texas, on the other hand, allows 78.7 points per game (ranked 296th).
Southern Illinois is one of the top-scoring teams on the road, averaging 83.0 points per game (ranked 22nd). North Texas, on the other hand, allows 73.6 points per home game (ranked 270th).
The Southern Illinois Salukis have a defensive rating of 95.0 (ranked 78th), while the North Texas Mean Green have an offensive rating of 106.0 (ranked 169th).
North Texas has an average field goal percentage of 49.3%. Southern Illinois is undefeated (3-0) when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The North Texas Mean Green and the Southern Illinois Salukis both rank higher in average field goal percentage when compared to their effective field goal percentages. North Texas is 56th and 31st in the nation for eFG% and FG% respectively, while Southern Illinois ranks 101st and 96th in these categories.
The North Texas Mean Green average 7.6 steals per game. The Southern Illinois Salukis are undefeated at 3-0 when they allow at least 7 steals.
