The UAB Blazers (24-5) will close out the regular season on the road when they clash against the FIU Golden Panthers (13-16) at U.S. Century Bank Arena. Action gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 3.
The Golden Panthers defeated Florida Atlantic 71-63 in their last game. With 17 points and 10 rebounds, Adrian Diaz recorded his eighth double-double of the season. The Blazers, meanwhile, are coming off a 71-67 win over Western Kentucky in their last outing. Tosin Mehinti played well for UAB, recording 10 points, three rebounds, and three assists.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Blazers won the first game 74-69. Nick Norton had a standout performance in the victory, putting up 15 points, two rebounds, four assists, four steals, and three three-pointers.
The Golden Panthers come into this game 13-16 Straight Up (SU) and 12-10-1 Against The Spread (ATS). FIU has averaged 79.8 points per game over the last 10 games, higher than its season average of 71.8.
Over on the other bench, the Blazers head into the game with records of 13-12 ATS and 24-5 SU. They sport the 38th-ranked scoring offense in the country, averaging 79.3 points per game. The Blazers are an unselfish team with an average of 18.8 assists per game, ranking third in Division I.
Following the Blazers’ latest win over the Golden Panthers, they are even SU as well (2-2).
Predictions: SU Winner – UAB, ATS Winner – UAB
Notes
“Florida International is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games “.
“Florida International is 1-3-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home”.
“Florida International is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games at home”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Florida International’s last 5 games at home”.
UAB sits at 14-2 SU against its conference rivals, while FIU is 7-9 SU.
UAB averages 79.3 points per game (ranked 38th). FIU, on the other hand, allows 69.6 points per game (ranked 106th).
UAB scores 73.8 points per away game (ranked 72nd). FIU ranks a poor 102nd in points allowed at home, allowing 67.3 points.
Ranked 34th, the UAB Blazers have an offensive rating of 114.1. The FIU Golden Panthers rank 139th with a defensive rating of just 103.6.
UAB has the 16th-ranked average field goal percentage at 48.7%. FIU has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage (0-3).
The FIU Golden Panthers average 15.0 three point attempts per game, and the UAB Blazers attempt 19.0 per game. When going for at least 20 three pointers in a game this season, both teams have winning records; FIU is 2-1 and UAB is 12-4.
The 25th-ranked team in the category, UAB has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.46 this season. FIU ranks lower at 210th with an A/TO of .99.
UAB, the 61st-ranked team in rebounding, registers an average of 38.7 rebounds per game. FIU does worse, ranked 110th with 37.4.
UAB ranks 144th in offensive rebounds, while FIU ranks at 48th in defensive rebounds.
On average, FIU forces a turnover rate of 15.0%. When UAB turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a formidable 20-5 record.
