NCAA Baskteball Picks and Tips: Providence at Rhode Island
Friday, December 23, 2011
Frank Martin
Providence Friars has one game left before Big East play begins, and despite Rhode Island’s early-season struggles, the Friars are sure to face a challenge when they travel to take on the Rhode Island Rams in the 122nd meeting of the Ocean State rivalry Friday at the Ryan Center.
Providence is coming off a 67-52 victory over New Hampshire. In the win, the Friars shot 49 percent from the field, while holding the Wildcats to 7-of-29 from 3-point range. Meanwhile, the Rams have been anything but spectacular and enter off a 68-65 loss to Yale. Rhode Island has lost seven straight and sits alone at the bottom of the Atlantic 10 conference.
- Providence Friars @ Rhode Island Rams
When:
7:00 PM ET, Friday, December 23, 2011
Where: Thomas and Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
TV:
7 p.m. ET, COX
The Friars have opened as 6.5-point favorites on SBG Global Sportsbook’s Live NCAA Basketball Odds.
Providence Friars (10-2): Vincent Council and Gerard Coleman have powered the Friars throughout their season-best six-game win streak. Council, a junior, leads Providence in scoring average (17) and assists (7), and has scored in double figures in 10 of his 12 starts. Coleman is the second-leading scorer, averaging 15 points for the Friars, who haven’t lost since a 79-62 setback against Northern Iowa on Nov. 26. Defensively, Providence has been successful, holding its opponents to 70 or fewer points in all but three games.
Rhode Island Rams (1-10): Rhode Island’s lone win this season came in an 85-73 home victory over Hofstra on Nov 25. Since then, the Rams have lost all seven games by an average margin of 12 points. Jamal Wilson leads the team in scoring with a 17-point average, but missed the game against the Bulldogs because of a suspension. In his absence, Nikola Malesevic, who averages 13 points, scored a game-high 25 for Rhode Island, which has struggled from the field, shooting just 41 percent. The Rams have allowed more than 80 points four times this season.
1.
Providence is 140-107 all-time against
teams from the Atlantic 10 conference.
2. The home team has won each of the last eight meetings in the series.
3. Rhode
Island has won 11 or more home games in each of its last five seasons. This year,
the Rams are 1-5 at home.
NCAA BASKETBALL PREDICTION: Friars 77, Rams 69
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Tags
gerard coleman - nikola malesevic - providence friars - rhode island rams - thomas and mack center - vincent council