Check out our free Coastal Carolina vs James Madison pick and preview for this NCAA Basketball game in Harrisonburg. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Basketball matchup.

Coastal Carolina vs James Madison Pick & Preview: Thursday, January 26th Betting Odds

Chanticleers vs Dukes Matchup at a Glance

  • Sport: NCAAB
  • Teams: Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at James Madison Dukes
  • Where: Harrisonburg at Atlantic Union Bank Center
  • Date: Thursday, January 26th
  • Betting Odds: Coastal Carolina +12.5, COAST +571 | JMAD -897 O/U 151.0

Chanticleers Preview:

Coastal Carolina will take the floor against the Dukes with an overall record of 10-10. So far, the Chanticleers have played 9 games on the road, with a record of 3-6. For the season, Coastal Carolina has been the underdog in 12 games, sitting with a mark of 6-6. Currently, the oddsmakers have the lines set with the Chanticleers being +12.5 point underdogs.

Essam Mostafa comes into today’s game as the Chanticleers’ leading scorer at 13.45 points per contest. Not only has Mostafa been key to the team’s scoring efforts, but he is Coastal Carolina’s top rebounder at 10.35 boards per contest. Behind Mostafa, the team has benefited from the strong play of Josh Uduje, who is second on the team in scoring at 13.1 points per game. Overall, he has hit 42.8% of his shots and is adding 3.35 boards per game.

Coming into today’s game, Coastal Carolina will be looking from some improved play from their offense. Currently, the Chanticleers are ranked 153rd at 72.8 points per game. A major reason for their low scoring mumbers is the fact that they tend to work the clock on offense. This year, they are the 535th ranked team in terms of pace. When looking at their 3-point shooting numbers, Coastal Carolina is close to the NCAA average at 36.1%.

Dukes Preview:

James Madison will take the floor against the Chanticleers with an overall record of 13-8. Currently, the Dukes have been the home team 9 times, sitting with a record of 7-2. The Dukes’ are sitting with a betting line that is -12.5 points in their favor. For the season, James Madison has been favored to win in 13 games, sitting with a mark of 8-5.

James Madison’s leading scorer this season is Terrence Edwards, who is averaging 12.25 points per contest. So far, Edwards has accounted for 13.7% of the team’s scoring. In addition, he is contributing 4.55 rebounds per game and 1.95 assists. Vado Morse is the second leading scorer for the Dukes, averaging 13.0 points per game. Between him and Morse, they are accounting for 26.8% of the team’s scoring.

On offense, James Madison is scoring a rate similar to the NCAA average at 75.1 points per game. This figure has come despite struggling to knock down shots from outside. Through 21 games, they have only hit 34.5% of their 3-point field goal attempts. For the season, 35.87% of their shots have come from beyond the arc.

Free Spread Prediction: James Madison Dukes -12.5

If you’re considering whether to make a bet against the spread in this matchup, we suggest betting on the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers team as +12.5 point underdogs. One obstacle that often hinders teams who are significant underdogs is being matched up against a team that can control the pace of the game. However, both Coastal Carolina and James Madison come into today’s game with possession rates that are near the NCAA average. Given that the style of play won’t be a problem for the Chanticleers and they have a 3-2 record against the spread in their last 5 games as underdogs, we think they will cover the spread at away.