The Mount St Mary Mountaineers are off to a 5-8 start to the 2022-23 NCAA Basketball season, eighth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, and are on a two-game losing streak.
They are coming off a loss against the Howard Bison (63-62) in their last outing. Dakota Leffew's 23-point effort went to waste as no other player was able to contribute a lot and the team ended up losing.
They will take on the Niagara Purple Eagles, who are on a 6-5 start to the season, and are seventh in the same division. The Eagles managed a win in their previous outing against the Binghamton Bearcats (73-67) where Noah Thomasson took the game by storm with a 27-point performance. They will now host this game at the Gallagher Center on Saturday (December 31).
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Mount St Mary Mountaineers vs Niagara Purple Eagles: Betting Odds
The Mountaineers have had a rough start to the season with only five wins and eight losses. Their away record needs some improvement, which is currently at 3-5 but their home record is also bad at 2-3.
The team has been very poor on the offensive front, averaging only 64.8 points per game, which ranks 332nd in the nation, while conceding 65.2 points.
They are average on both offensive and defensive rebounds. If they work on that, both their offense and defense might improve.
The Niagara Purple Eagles are a little better compared to the Mountaineers with six wins and five losses. The team has a perfect home record of 3-0 for now. They are also poor when it comes to offense, averaging only 64.7 points per game whereas conceding 65.7 points. Similar to the Mountaineers, the Purple Eagles could look to improve their offensive and defensive rebounds.
Mount St Mary Mountaineers vs Niagara Purple Eagles: Match Details
Fixture: Mount St Mary Mountaineers @ Niagara Purple Eagles
Date & Time: Saturday, December 31, 12:00 p.m ET
Venue: Gallagher Center, New York State
Mount St Mary Mountaineers vs Niagara Purple Eagles: Prediction
The Purple Eagles are 4-1 against the spread in their last five games against a team that has a losing record. They are also 20-7-1 against the spread in their last 28 home games.
Mount St Mary's and Niagara are neck-to-neck in terms of statistics and form this season. It is sure to be a very tough contest today.
Final Prediction: Niagara -2.5 (-110)
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