Check out our free Lamar vs McNeese State pick and preview for this NCAA Basketball game in Lake Charles. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Basketball matchup.
Lamar vs McNeese State Pick & Preview: Thursday, February 2nd Betting Odds
Cardinals vs Cowboys Matchup at a Glance
- Sport: NCAAB
- Teams: Lamar Cardinals at McNeese State Cowboys
- Where: Lake Charles at The Legacy Center
- Date: Thursday, February 2nd
- Betting Odds: Lamar +8, LAMAR +291 | MCNST -385 O/U 140.0
Cardinals Preview:
Heading into today’s matchup vs McNeese State, the Lamar Cardinals will be taking the floor for the 23rd time this season and have an overall record of 6-16. So far, the Cardinals have played 11 games on the road, with a record of 1-10. For the season, Lamar has been the underdog in 17 games, sitting with a mark of 2-15. Currently, the oddsmakers have the lines set with the Cardinals being +8 point underdogs.
Lamar will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Nate Calmese who is averaging 16.77 points per game for the Cardinals. Calmese 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 Cardinals’ offensive game plan is the play of Chris Pryor who has hit 38.1% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 10.14 points per game.
Offensive production has been hard to come by for Lamar this season, as they are currently ranked 447th in college basketball at 61.3 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 Cardinals’ 3-point shooting percentage sits at just 29.9%, placing them 473rd in the NCAA.
Cowboys Preview:
The McNeese State Cowboys head into today’s game in what will be their 23rd game of the season, posting a record of 5-17. Currently, the Cowboys have been the home team 9 times, sitting with a record of 3-6. The Cowboys’ are sitting with a betting line that is -8 points in their favor. For the season, McNeese State has been favored to win in 7 games, sitting with a mark of 2-5.
Christian Shumate comes into today’s game as the Cowboys’ leading scorer at 12.18 points per contest. Not only has Shumate been key to the team’s scoring efforts, but he is McNeese State’s top rebounder at 9.09 boards per contest. Behind Shumate, the team has benefited from the strong play of Trae English, who is second on the team in scoring at 11.18 points per game. Overall, he has hit 42.3% of his shots and is adding 1.68 boards per game.
McNeese State comes into today’s matchup vs Lamar, looking to continue their strong offensive play, as they are averaging 78.2 points per game. Through 22 games, they have hit 45.1% of their field goal attempts. In terms of pace, the Cowboys have preferred to slow the game down, ranking 174th in possessions per game.
Free Spread Prediction: Lamar Cardinals +8
In this showdown between the Lamar Cardinals and McNeese State Cowboys, we have two teams that will be looking to control the pace of play in different ways. On one side, Lamar Cardinals hopes to speed the game game up while McNeese State tends to work the clock and make team’s defend deep into every possession. In this situation, our model points to the McNeese State Cowboys coming home with the win and covering the spread. Even with the line sitting -8 points in their favor, we view their advantage over Lamar being strong enough to take them to cover. Leading up to tip-off, you can feel good about the Cowboys cruising to an easy win.
