The Western Carolina Catamounts will travel to Ellis T Johnson Arena to take on the Morehead State Eagles. Action begins at 4:00 pm ET on Sunday, Dec. 20.
The Eagles are hoping to rebound after their 72-62 loss to Pittsburgh in their last matchup. Lyonell Gaines had a solid performance, recording 11 points, four rebounds, and one assist for Morehead State.
This one isn’t expected to be close when Morehead State, a substantial 10-point favorite, takes on Western Carolina. The matchup has an estimated Over/Under (O/U) of 135 points. The Eagles have gone 5-3 Straight Up (SU) and 5-2 Against The Spread (ATS). Expect to see a lot of second-chance opportunities for Morehead State in this matchup, which is one of the top rebounding teams in the nation with an average of 14.9 offensive boards per game. Opposing teams know they’re in for a battle when they play Morehead State’s stingy defense. The Eagles are one of the top teams when it comes to defense, allowing just 61.4 points per game. Morehead State’s three-point defense can be considered one of the best in the nation, allowing just 4.0 three-pointers per game. Morehead State’s defenders rank 17th in Division I in steals with 9.0 per game.
As for their opponent, the Catamounts have 4-6 SU and 2-3-1 ATS records. The Catamounts have one of the best opponent three-point field goal percentages in the country at .294.
This game will be the first meeting for Morehead State and Western Carolina in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – Mor, ATS Winner – Mor, O/U – Over
Notes
Morehead State is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games.
Morehead State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home.
Western Carolina scores just 62.0 points per away game (ranked 290th). Morehead State ranks eighth in points allowed at home, giving up 52.7 points.
The Western Carolina Catamounts average 72.9 possessions per game and 1.019 points per possession. The Morehead State Eagles earn fewer possessions with 64.7, but they score more points with 1.050.
Morehead State has an average effective field goal percentage of 47.5%. Western Carolina is a losing 2-4 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, the Morehead State Eagles attempt 15.0 three point field goals per game and the Western Carolina Catamounts attempt 25.0. In games where they attempt at least 20 threes, Morehead State is perfect (1-0), while Western Carolina has a record of 4-5.
The Western Carolina Catamounts rank 41st in offensive rebounds. The Morehead State Eagles rank 327th in the nation in defensive rebounds.
Morehead State is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TO% of 25.7% (ranked sixth). Western Carolina is winless this season (0-3 SU) when its TO% reaches 25.7% or greater.
