The Rhode Island Rams (11-3, 3-0 A10) travel to Chaifetz Arena to take on the Saint Louis Billikens (8-8, 1-2 A10). The Rams look to extend their six-game winning streak. Rhode Island is a 9-point favorite on the opening line, while the Over/Under (O/U) for the game opened at 131.5 points. Action begins at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, January 9, 2018, and it can be seen on CBS Sports Network.
Rhode Island Rams at Saint Louis Billikens Betting Preview
The last time the Rams played, they easily got past the George Washington Colonials, 81-60. Jared Terrell was the top scorer from either team with 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting. Rhode Island played a nearly perfect game. They had a turnover percentage of 14.4 (worse than their season average of 13.4) and an effective field goal percentage of 0.603 (above their season average of 0.511). George Washington recorded marks of 20.8 and 0.453, respectively, for those same stats.
The Billikens will look to keep it rolling after beating the Richmond Spiders in their last game, 69-62. Saint Louis rallied around D.J. Foreman, who was the teams high scorer with 16 points on 7-for-9 shooting. Saint Louis dominated nearly every stat category in the game. They had a fantastic offensive rebounding percentage of 41.0 (above their season average of 30.0) and a turnover percentage of 12.6 (better than their season average of 17.0). For those same stats, Richmond was 21.4 and 21.8, respectively.
The aggressive Saint Louis offense seems poised to dominate from the charity stripe. The Billikens rank 19th in the NCAA with a free throw attempt (FTA) rate of 0.304, while Rhode Island ranks 312th in FTA rate allowed (0.296).
Of Rhode Island’s 12 games with betting action, six have finished over the projected point total, while 7 of Saint Louis 13 games have finished under the projected point total. The Rams have the substantial advantage straight up (SU) (11-3 vs. 8-8), but both teams are near the .500 mark against the spread (ATS).
Terrell has taken his game to another level over the last five games for Rhode Island, averaging 18.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
This will be the first matchup of the year between these two teams. The Rams won the only contest played against each other last season, 90-56. The Rams dominated nearly every stat category in the game. They had a fantastic effective field goal percentage of 0.635 and a solid turnover percentage of 9.9. The Billikens were 0.375 and 16.7, respectively, for those same stats.
Rhode Island Rams vs. Saint Louis Billikens Free Prediction
Predictions: SU Winner – Rhode Island, ATS Winner – Rhode Island, O/U – Over
Betting Notes:
- Rhode Island is 2-2-1 ATS on the road, while Saint Louis is 4-3 ATS at home.
- The total has gone under in 4 of the Billikens 7 home games, while 3 of the Rams 5 road games have gone over.
- Rhode Island ranks 30th in steals per game (8.2) while Saint Louis ranks 91st (6.6).
- The Rams rank 22nd in assists allowed per game (10.6) while the Billikens rank 72nd (12.3).
- Rhode Island leads the nation with 14.4 three pointers allowed per game while Saint Louis is 39th with 19.2 three pointers allowed per game.
Betting Trends:
- Saint Louis is 3-1 ATS with 2 overs and 2 unders in their last five games.
- Over their last five games, Rhode Island is 3-1-1 ATS with 3 overs and 2 unders.
- The Billikens have outscored opponents by an average of 3.8 points in their last five games. For the season, Saint Louis has been defeated by an average of 0.7 points.
- During their last five games, the Rams have scored an average of 79.6 points per game (2.9 above their season average) and allowed an average of 64.0 points per game (3.0 below their season average).
