Check out our free Middle Tennessee vs FIU pick and preview for this NCAA Basketball game in Miami. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Basketball matchup.
Middle Tennessee vs FIU Pick & Preview: Saturday, January 28th Betting Odds
Blue Raiders vs Golden Panthers Matchup at a Glance
- Sport: NCAAB
- Teams: Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at FIU Golden Panthers
- Where: Miami at Ocean Bank Convocation Center
- Date: Saturday, January 28th
- Betting Odds: Middle Tennessee -3.5, MTNST -175 | FLINT +140 O/U 138.0
Blue Raiders Preview:
Middle Tennessee will take the floor against the Golden Panthers with an overall record of 13-8. On the road, the Blue Raiders will be playing their 9th game of the season, having gone 3-6. So far, the Blue Raiders have been favored 10 times, going 7-3 straight up. In today’s matchup, the oddsmakers have Middle Tennessee as -3.5 point favorites.
Middle Tennessee will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Eli Lawrence who is averaging 12.24 points per game for the Blue Raiders. Lawrence 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 Blue Raiders’ offensive game plan is the play of DeAndre Dishman who has hit 52.4% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 11.52 points per game.
On offense, Middle Tennessee is scoring a rate similar to the NCAA average at 74.4 points per game. This figure has come despite struggling to knock down shots from outside. Through 21 games, they have only hit 32.8% of their 3-point field goal attempts. For the season, 43.09% of their shots have come from beyond the arc.
Golden Panthers Preview:
FIU will take the floor against the Blue Raiders with an overall record of 10-11. So far this season, FIU has played 13 games at home, sitting with a record of 9-4. For the season, FIU has been the underdog in 12 games, sitting with a mark of 3-9. Currently, the oddsmakers have the lines set with the Golden Panthers being +3.5 point underdogs.
FIU will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Denver Jones who is averaging 19.21 points per game for the Golden Panthers. Jones 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 Golden Panthers’ offensive game plan is the play of Arturo Dean who has hit 47.3% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 11.9 points per game.
Offensive production has been hard to come by for FIU this season, as they are currently ranked 213th in college basketball at 70.8 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 Golden Panthers’ 3-point shooting percentage sits at just 35.0%, placing them 180th in the NCAA.
Free Spread Prediction: FIU Golden Panthers +3.5
Heading into this matchup between the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders and FIU Golden Panthers we have a strong lean on taking the points with FIU at +3.5. Both team’s are going to come into this game looking to get up looks from outside, as they are both average team’s in terms of 3-pointers made per game. Look for FIU to benefit from facing another squad looking to turn this into a 3-point shooting contest. When looking at the line, we see tremendous value in taking the FIU Golden Panthers at +3.5. Go ahead and lock this bet in before tip-off.
