NEC foes will clash when the Sacred Heart Pioneers (5-9, 0-1 NEC) take on the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights (4-7, 1-0 NEC) at William Pitt Center – West Gym. Action gets underway at 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, December 31, 2017.
Fairleigh Dickinson Knights at Sacred Heart Pioneers Free Preview
In the Knights last game, they defeated the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds, 82-71. Mike Holloway was the games leading scorer with 27 points on 11-for-16 shooting. The Knights had a fantastically low turnover percentage of 4.9 (better than their season average of 19.7) and had a better effective field goal percentage (0.493 vs. 0.484).
The Pioneers are hoping for a better outcome after their 73-68 loss to the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers in their last outing. Mario Matasovic was the games leading scorer with 17 points on 7-for-13 shooting. St. Francis Brooklyn had a turnover percentage of 8.2 (better than their season average of 16.8). Sacred Heart, meanwhile, had an offensive rebounding percentage of 38.2 (above their season average of 31.9).
This has potential to be an error-filled game for the offense of Sacred Heart. Sacred Heart ranks 331st in the nation in ball protection (turnover percentage of 22.7 percent), while the disruptive defense of Fairleigh Dickinson forces the 36th-most turnovers in the nation (23.2 percent).
Darian Anderson has been playing at a high level over the last five games for Fairleigh Dickinson, averaging 14.6 points and 2.4 steals per game.
This is the first time these teams will clash this year. The Pioneers won both games played against each other last season. In the most recent matchup, Sacred Heart won 91-81. Sacred Heart made good use of their 38 trips to the free throw line, converting on 31 of them (81.6 percent). Fairleigh Dickinson, on the other hand, was 24-31 (77.4 percent).
Fairleigh Dickinson Knights vs. Sacred Heart Pioneers ATS Prediction
Predictions: SU Winner – Fairleigh Dickinson, ATS Winner – Fairleigh Dickinson, O/U – Over
Betting Notes:
- The Knights rank 133rd in three pointers attempted per game (22.3) while the Pioneers rank 194th in three pointers allowed per game (23.9).
- Sacred Heart ranks 32nd in rebounds per game (40.4) while Fairleigh Dickinson ranks 225th in rebounds allowed per game (38.8).
- The Knights rank 11th in steals per game (9.5) while the Pioneers rank 174th (5.2).
- Fairleigh Dickinson ranks 45th in blocks allowed per game (2.7) while Sacred Heart ranks 118th (3.9).
Bettings Trends:
- The Pioneers average margin of defeat in their last five games has been 4.8, down from 6.1 for the season.
- During their last five games, the Knights have scored an average of 62.8 points per game (10.6 below their season average) and allowed an average of 79.4 points per game (3.9 above their season average).
