The Rice Owls (7-23, 4-13 CUSA) and UTSA Roadrunners (17-13, 10-7 CUSA) bring the regular season to a close when they clash at Tudor Fieldhouse. The game will air on ESPN 3 at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 3, 2018.
The Over/Under (O/U) for the game has been set at 150 points with UTSA opening as a 1.5-point favorite.
UTSA Roadrunners at Rice Owls ATS Prediction
In the Roadrunners’ last game, they were blown out by the North Texas Mean Green, 80-62. North Texas’ 0.655 effective field goal percentage was their largest advantage over UTSA, who had a mark of 0.432. The Mean Green’s mark was above their season average of 0.512, while the Roadrunners’ was below their season average of 0.517. UTSA’s Byron Frohnen put together a good outing, recording 10 points and nine rebounds.
The Owls were victorious over the UTEP Miners in their last outing, 76-70. The Owls had a superb free throw rate of 0.281 (above their season average of 0.252) and had an offensive rebounding percentage of 33.3 (above their season average of 27.6). With 10 points and 10 rebounds, Rice’s Malik Osborne had a solid game.
Second-chance opportunities could be rare for Rice in this showdown. The Owls rank 217th in offensive rebounding percentage (27.8 percent), while UTSA ranks 50th in defensive rebounding percentage (74.7 percent). Moreover, the Roadrunners, who rank 307th in free throw attempt (FTA) rate (0.200), could struggle to get to the line against the Owls, who rank 43rd in opponents’ FTA rate (0.194).
UTSA heads into the game with records of 17-13 straight up (SU) and 14-10 against the spread (ATS). Of the Roadrunners’ 24 games that accepted bets, 14 have finished under the total.
Rice has a respectable record ATS (14-11), despite being 7-23 SU. Contrary to UTSA, Owls games have gone over the O/U total 52.0 percent of the time.
This is the second game of the season between these two teams. Jhivvan Jackson scored a game-high 20 points in the first game, in which the Roadrunners defeated the Owls 79-66, covering as 11.5-point favorites. The game finished with a total of 145 points, which was 11.5 points below the projected point total of 156.5 points. UTSA had a much better turnover percentage (15.4 vs. 25.0). Rice, meanwhile, had a better free throw rate (0.294 vs. 0.210).
UTSA Roadrunners vs. Rice Owls Betting Pick
Prediction: SU Winner – UTSA, ATS Winner – UTSA, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Notes:
UTSA is 9-6 ATS on the road with 9 overs and 6 unders.
At home, Rice is 6-5 ATS with 6 overs and 5 unders.
UTSA ranks 14th in three pointers attempted per game (28.1) while Rice ranks 282nd in three pointers allowed per game (25.4).
The Roadrunners rank 12th in rebounds per game (40.1) while the Owls rank 237th in rebounds allowed per game (37.3).
UTSA ranks 37th in steals allowed per game (5.3) while Rice ranks 191st (7.0).
The Roadrunners rank 111th in assists allowed per game (12.9) while the Owls rank 265th (16.6).
Rice ranks 20th in blocks allowed per game (2.5) while UTSA ranks 137th (3.6).
Bettings Trends:
In their last five games, UTSA is 3-2 ATS with 3 unders and 2 overs.
Rice is 3-2 ATS with 4 overs and 1 under over their last five games.
The Roadrunners have been outscored by an average of 6.0 points in their last five games. For the season, UTSA has defeated opponents by an average of 3.1 points.
During their last five games, the Owls have scored an average of 73.0 points per game (4.5 above their season average) and allowed an average of 78.2 points per game (2.6 above their season average).
