Check out our free Bradley vs UIC pick and preview for this NCAA Basketball game in Chicago. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Basketball matchup.
Bradley vs UIC Pick & Preview: Sunday, January 29th Betting Odds
Braves vs Flames Matchup at a Glance
- Sport: NCAAB
- Teams: Bradley Braves at UIC Flames
- Where: Chicago at Credit Union 1 Arena
- Date: Sunday, January 29th
- Betting Odds: Bradley -9, BRADLY -454 | ILLCHI +340 O/U 133.5
Braves Preview:
Heading into today’s matchup vs UIC, the Bradley Braves will be taking the floor for the 23rd time this season and have an overall record of 14-8. So far, the Braves have played 9 games on the road, with a record of 3-6. This season, Bradley has been favored to win in 14 games, sitting with a mark of 11-3. For today’s contest, Bradley has a betting line set -9 points in their favor.
Malevy Leons comes into today’s game as the Braves’ leading scorer at 11.32 points per contest. Not only has Leons been key to the team’s scoring efforts, but he is Bradley’s top rebounder at 6.41 boards per contest. Behind Leons, the team has benefited from the strong play of Duke Deen, who is second on the team in scoring at 10.82 points per game. Overall, he has hit 39.9% of his shots and is adding 2.18 boards per game.
Offensive production has been hard to come by for Bradley this season, as they are currently ranked 224th in college basketball at 70.5 points per game. A major reason for low scoring totals is the fact that they have played at a below average pace, and have struggled to knock down outside shots. As a team, the Braves’ 3-point shooting percentage sits at just 33.8%, placing them 267th in the NCAA.
Flames Preview:
Coming into today’s matchup, the UIC Flames are in the middle of a 8 game losing streak and have an overall record of 9-13. So far this season, UIC has played 10 games at home, sitting with a record of 5-5. For the season, UIC has been the underdog in 14 games, sitting with a mark of 1-13. Currently, the oddsmakers have the lines set with the Flames being +9 point underdogs.
UIC will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Jace Carter who is averaging 15.68 points per game for the Flames. Carter is also important to the team’s ability to score on the perimeter. So far, he leads the team in 3-point shots made. Also key to the Flames’ offensive game plan is the play of Toby Okani who has hit 48.6% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 12.45 points per game.
Offensive production has been hard to come by for UIC this season, as they are currently ranked 174th in college basketball at 72.0 points per game. A major reason for low scoring totals is the fact that they have played at a below average pace, and have struggled to knock down outside shots. As a team, the Flames’ 3-point shooting percentage sits at just 32.4%, placing them 350th in the NCAA.
Free Spread Prediction: UIC Flames +9
Our analysis of the matchup between the UIC Flames and Bradley Braves shows that UIC will cover the spread as +9 point underdogs. We feel that the spread for this game is set too high, creating an opportunity for UIC to cover. Even if they are trailing throughout the game, the Flames are a good candidate to keep the final score closer than predicted. In these scenarios, the better team’s pace of play can be a major factor in covering such a large spread. However, since both teams have possession rates that are near the NCAA average, UIC won’t have to play an unfamiliar style of basketball. Based on our model, we recommend betting on the UIC Flames at +9.
