It will be a showdown between two outstanding offenses when the East Tennessee State Buccaneers (21-4, 10-2 SoCon) challenge the Citadel Bulldogs (6-17, 0-12 SoCon) at Freedom Hall Civic Center. Action begins at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, February 12, 2020.
Citadel Bulldogs at East Tennessee State Buccaneers Betting Odds
In their last outing, the Buccaneers defeated the Mercer Bears, 73-60, while the Bulldogs lost to the VMI Keydets, 75-64.
East Tennessee State dominated nearly every facet of the contest. They had an extraordinary free throw rate of 0.417 (above their season average of 0.244) and an effective field goal percentage of 0.552 (above their season average of 0.540). Mercer had marks of 0.268 and 0.402, respectively, for those same stats. Citadel, meanwhile, had a free throw rate of 0.308 (above their season average of 0.217). East Tennessee State rallied around Daivien Williamson, who finished with 16 points. Tyson Batiste, meanwhile led the way for Citadel, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
In their first matchup this season, Jeromy Rodriguez led the Buccaneers to a 96-84 victory. He notched a double-double with 26 points and 16 rebounds. East Tennessee State won the rebounding battle. The Buccaneers had 16 offensive rebounds and 45 total rebounds, while the Bulldogs had five and 20, respectively.
The productive offense of East Tennessee State (10th in the nation with an offensive efficiency of 113.1) will battle against the bottom-tier defense of Citadel (267th in the nation with a defensive efficiency of 103.4). The Buccaneers should have the advantage on that side of the ball. It will also be a matchup of conflicting paces as the aggressively-paced Bulldogs rank sixth in possessions per game, while the slower-paced Buccaneers rank 264th.
Citadel Bulldogs at East Tennessee State Buccaneers Pick
College Basketball Pick: SU Winner – East Tennessee State, ATS Winner – East Tennessee State, O/U – Under
Betting Notes:
- East Tennessee State ranks 52nd in three pointers allowed per game (19.2) while Citadel ranks 283rd (27.8).
- The Buccaneers average 8.9 steals per game, which ranks 15th in the country. The Bulldogs rank 204th in steals allowed per game (8.1).
- Citadel ranks 30th in blocks allowed per game (2.5) while East Tennessee State ranks 64th (2.9).
- The Buccaneers rank 37th in rebounds allowed per game (31.6) while the Bulldogs rank 249th (38.1).
- East Tennessee State ranks 25th in assists allowed per game (10.3) while Citadel ranks 224th (14.5).
Bettings Trends:
- The Buccaneers’ average margin of victory in their last five games has been 8.2, down from 13.9 for the season.
- During their last five games, the Bulldogs have scored an average of 62.6 points per game (14.4 below their season average) and allowed an average of 79.2 points per game (0.5 below their season average).
