The Temple Owls (9-2) will travel to Palestra to take on the Drexel Dragons (6-6). The game gets underway at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, December 22, 2018.
Temple Owls at Drexel Dragons Betting Odds
In their last contest, the Dragons lost to the Eastern Michigan Eagles, 66-62, while the Owls defeated the La Salle Explorers, 75-67.
Temple played a nearly perfect game. They had an offensive rebounding percentage of 39.5 and a free throw rate of 0.456. For those same stats, La Salle had marks of 12.5 and 0.242, respectively. Drexel, meanwhile, had a better effective field goal percentage (0.482 vs. 0.500). Drexel’s Kurk Lee had a good outing, finishing with 13 points. Nate Pierre-Louis, meanwhile was a key piece for Temple with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
The Owls won the only contest between these two teams last season, 63-60. Temple did a great job of making free throws (11-13; 84.6 percent). Drexel, on the other hand, had a much better offensive rebounding percentage (35.9 vs. 19.4). This is the first time these teams will meet this year.
The Owls’ Pierre-Louis has been playing well over his last five games, averaging 0 points per game. Meanwhile, Alihan Demir has averaged 0 points during that same time frame for the Dragons.
The elite offense of Drexel (55th in the nation with an effective field goal percentage 0.551) will face off against the mid-tier defense of Temple (246th in effective field goal percentage allowed 0.518). The Dragons should have the advantage on that end of the court. Also, the Owls rank 21st in turnover percentage (15.8 percent), while the Dragons rank 328th in opponents’ turnover percentage (16.0 percent).
Temple at Drexel Free Pick
Pick: SU Winner – Temple, ATS Winner – Temple, O/U – Under
Betting Notes:
- Temple ranks 11th in steals per game (9.3) while Drexel ranks 185th (4.4).
- The Owls rank 48th in assists allowed per game (11.3) while the Dragons rank 114th (13.1).
- The Owls rank 24th in blocks allowed per game (2.4) while the Dragons rank 133rd (4.2).
- Drexel ranks 32nd in rebounds allowed per game (31.3) while Temple ranks 111th (34.5).
Bettings Trends:
- During their last five games, the Owls have scored an average of 74.2 points per game (1.1 above their season average) and allowed an average of 67.0 points per game (1.0 below their season average).
- The Dragons’ average margin of victory in their last five games has been 13.6, up from 3.3 for the season.
