A five-game road winless streak may come to an end for the VMI Keydets (6-13) when they compete against the Citadel Bulldogs (9-12) at McAlister Field House. The game begins at 1:00 pm ET on Saturday, Jan. 30 and will air on EFC and ES3.
The Bulldogs are hoping to rebound after their 102-95 loss to UNC Greensboro on Thursday. Derrick Henry had a good outing for Citadel, putting up 20 points, four rebounds, and two steals. The Keydets are coming off a 73-58 loss to Mercer on Thursday. Julian Eleby led the team in scoring with 15 points.
The Bulldogs look to improve upon their records of 9-12 Straight Up (SU) and 8-5 Against The Spread (ATS). Citadel has been steady from the free throw line, shooting a stellar .742. As for the Citadel defense, opponents have consistently had the ball stolen by the Bulldogs, who rank seventh in the country in steals per game with 9.3.
On the other side, the Keydets head into the game with records of 2-10 ATS and 6-13 SU. VMI has been particularly bad ATS over its past 10 matchups, going 1-7. VMI may be taking trips to the free throw line early and often with the Bulldogs averaging a Division I-high 25.0 fouls per game.
This game marks the season’s first head-to-head clash between the conference foes. Their previous game was a Keydets victory, bringing their SU record to 6-3. The Bulldogs hold the advantage ATS with a record of 5-4.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cit, ATS Winner – Cit
Notes
The total has gone OVER in 5 of The Citadel’s last 5 games.
The Citadel is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games at home.
The Citadel is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against VMI.
On average, Citadel has 83.0 possessions per game and scores 1.086 points on each possession. VMI has both fewer possessions (68.7) and scores fewer points during those possessions (.966).
The Citadel Bulldogs average an effective field goal percentage of 52.5% this season. The VMI Keydets have a subpar record of 1-9 when opponents have an eFG% of 52.5% or greater.
On average, Citadel attempts 35.0 three pointers and VMI attempts 25.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the Citadel Bulldogs have a 9-12 record while the VMI Keydets have a losing 6-11 record.
The Citadel Bulldogs average 9.3 steals per game, ranked seventh in the nation. The VMI Keydets are an even 2-2 when they allow at least 9 steals.
