The Southern Miss Golden Eagles (13-16, 6-10 CUSA) will travel to Don Haskins Center to clash against the UTEP Miners (9-18, 4-11 CUSA) in their home finale. The games Over/Under (O/U) has been set at 139.5 points with UTEP opening as a 2-point favorite. Action begins at 9 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 24, 2018.
Southern Miss Golden Eagles vs. UTEP Miners Free Preview
In the Golden Eagles last game, they were beaten by the UTSA Roadrunners, 64-56. Southern Miss Cortez Edwards contributed 12 points and seven rebounds in the contest. UTSA held the Golden Eagles to an offensive rebounding percentage of 12.5 (below their season average of 22.7). Southern Miss, on the other hand, had a free throw rate of 0.269 (above their season average of 0.199).
The Miners will look to keep it rolling after edging the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs in their last game, 74-72. With 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting, Omega Harris was the top scorer from either team. The Miners had a superb offensive rebounding percentage of 29.6 (above their season average of 19.4) and had an effective field goal percentage of 0.582 (above their season average of 0.495).
Second-chance opportunities could be scarce for Southern Miss in this showdown. The Golden Eagles currently rank 333rd in offensive rebounding percentage (22.2 percent), while UTEP ranks 90th in defensive rebounding percentage (73.4 percent).
Of Southern Miss 24 games with betting action, 15 have finished over the O/U total, while 11 of UTEP’s 22 games have finished over the projected point total. The Golden Eagles hold a substantial advantage in terms of straight up (SU) and against the spread (ATS) records. They are 13-16 SU and 12-12 ATS, while the Miners are 9-18 SU and 9-13 ATS.
These teams have already met once this season. The two teams combined to score 160 points in that game, which was well over the projected point total of 130. The Golden Eagles won 85-75, covering as 4-point favorites. Southern Miss had a much better turnover percentage (12.6 vs. 21.3). UTEP, on the other hand, had a much better offensive rebounding percentage (30.3 vs. 12.0). Dominic Magee was the games leading scorer with 21 points.
Southern Miss Golden Eagles vs. UTEP Miners Betting Prediction
Prediction: SU Winner – UTEP, ATS Winner – UTEP, O/U – Under
Betting Notes:
- The Miners rank 157th in blocks per game (2.9) while the Golden Eagles rank 228th (1.6).
- Southern Miss ranks 200th in rebounds allowed per game (35.9) while UTEP ranks 266th (38.3).
- Southern Miss is 5-10 ATS on the road, while UTEP is 5-7 ATS at home.
- The Golden Eagles have 9 overs and 6 unders in 15 road games.
- Of the Miners 12 home games, they have 7 unders and 5 overs.
- Southern Miss ranks 74th in assists per game (15.0) while UTEP ranks 264th (10.7).
- The Golden Eagles rank 62nd in steals per game (7.1) while the Miners rank 243rd (4.1).
- Southern Miss ranks 154th in three pointers attempted per game (21.9) while UTEP ranks 239th in three pointers allowed per game (24.1).
Betting Trends:
- UTEP is 1-4 ATS with 3 unders and 2 overs in their last five games.
- Over their last five games, Southern Miss is 2-3 ATS with 4 unders and 1 over.
- The Miners average margin of defeat in their last five games has been 11.8, up from 4.3 for the season.
- During their last five games, the Golden Eagles have scored an average of 64.4 points per game (7.0 below their season average) and allowed an average of 69.0 points per game (3.1 below their season average).
