The No.3-seeded Washington Huskies challenge the No.6-seeded Long Beach State 49ers in the first round of the NIT tournament at Alaska Airlines Arena. Action gets underway at 9:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Mar. 15 and will air on ES2 and ES3.
The Huskies fell to Oregon 83-77 in the 2 of the Pac-12 tournament. Dejounte Murray had a solid performance, contributing 13 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists for Washington. The 49ers, meanwhile, are coming off a 64-60 loss against Hawaii in the 3 of the Big West tournament. Nick Faust led the game in scoring with 17 points.
Over the last five games, Andrew Andrews has been playing at a high level for the Huskies. During that stretch, he has averaged 26.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.4 three-pointers. On the other side, the 49ers have been led by Faust. He has upped his play, averaging 20.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.0 steal, 0.8 blocks, and 2.4 three-pointers in the same time frame.
The Huskies come into this game 18-14 Straight Up (SU) and 18-13 Against The Spread (ATS). The Huskies have a distinct advantage on the boards in this matchup. They are the 32nd-ranked rebounding team in Division I, averaging 39.8 per game, while the 49ers rank 193rd in the nation with 35.8 per game. As for the Washington defense, an area where the Huskies are particularly strong is shot blocking, where they average a Division I-best 6.7 blocks per game.
Across the court, the 49ers have 20-14 SU and 19-11-3 ATS records.
With the Huskies’ last win against the 49ers, their SU record rises to 4-0 over Long Beach State. At 2-2, they are even ATS.
Predictions: SU Winner – Wash, ATS Winner – Wash
Notes
“Washington is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games at home”.
“Washington is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games “.
“Washington is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 15 of Washington’s last 21 games “.
The Long Beach State 49ers have a defensive rating of 103.2 (ranked 87th), while the Washington Huskies have an offensive rating of 106.4 (ranked 162nd).
On average, Washington has 78.3 possessions per game and scores 1.064 points on each possession. Long Beach State has both fewer possessions (70.3) and scores fewer points during those possessions (1.051).
Washington has an average effective field goal percentage of 48.1%. Long Beach State is 9-13 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, the Washington Huskies attempt 22.0 three point field goals per game and the Long Beach State 49ers attempt 22.0. In games where they attempt at least 20 threes, Washington has a 13-11 record and Long Beach State has a 15-12 record.
Long Beach State ranks 69th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.25. Washington is ranked lower at 182nd with an A/TO of 1.04.
Washington, the 32nd-ranked team in rebounding, register an average of 39.8 rebounds per game. Long Beach State does worse, ranked 193rd with 35.8.
On average, Washington makes 7.7 steals per game. Long Beach State has a solid 7-4 record when it gives up at least 7 steals.
