Nebraska-Omaha vs North Dakota 1/6/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The North Dakota Fighting Hawks will travel to Baxter Arena to take on the Omaha Mavericks this Thursday night in College Basketball action.

The North Dakota Fighting Hawks lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 4-10 on the season after being defeated by the North Dakota State Bison, 86-76, on December 22^nd. North Dakota had answers on the defensive end for North Dakota State and could not fight back after the Bison took an 81-74 lead with 2:34 left in regulation. North Dakota shot 45.2% from the field & 37.0% from beyond the arc while allowing North Dakota State to shoot 50.8% from the field & 42.1% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Fighting Hawks was Paul Burns who had a double-double with 27 points, 11 rebounds, & 2 assists.

On the season, North Dakota is averaging 69.4 ppg on 40.1% shooting from the field. The Fighting Hawks are averaging 8.9 three-pointers per game on 33.3% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, North Dakota has been led by Paul Burns (13.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.2 apg, 1.4 spg), Caleb Nero (12.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.8 apg), Mitchell Sueker (11.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.8 apg), & Tsotne Tsartsidze (7.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg).

Defensively, North Dakota is allowing their opponents to average 76.6 ppg on 48.5% shooting from the field. The Fighting Hawks have a rebound margin of -0.6 and a turnover margin of -0.9.

The Omaha Mavericks dropped to 2-12 on the season after being defeated by the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles, 107-62, this past Saturday. Omaha struggled on both ends of the court against Oral Roberts and had no change in fighting back into the game after going into halftime trailing by a 59-27 margin. Omaha shot just 28.6% from the field & 23.5% from beyond the arc while allowing Oral Roberts to shoot 54.1% from the field & 48.3% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Mavericks was Frankie Fidler who had 15 points, 3 rebounds, & 1 steal.

On the season, Omaha is averaging 64.7 ppg on 39.7% shooting from the field. The Mavericks are averaging 7.6 three-pointers on 33.8% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Omaha has been led by Felix Lemetti (10.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.5 apg), Nick Ferrarini (9.6 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 1.3 apg), Frankie Fidler (9.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 1.8 apg), & Kyle Luedtke (7.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.0 apg).

Defensively, Omaha is allowing their opponents to an average of 82.2 ppg on 46.9% shooting from the field. The Mavericks have a rebound margin of -5.8 and a turnover margin of -3.8.

The Fighting Hawks are 1-9 ATS in their last 10 games vs. a team with a losing road record and just 1-8 ATS in their last 9 games overall. The Mavericks are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game, however, are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games vs. a team with a losing straight up record.

North Dakota is led by their offense that despite ranking just 244^th in scoring offense, has been solid from beyond the arc, ranking 72^nd in three-pointers made per game. The Fighting Hawks have struggled defensively and come into this game ranked just 320^th in scoring defense & 344^th in defensive FG%. Omaha has struggled on both ends of the court and come into this game ranked just 307^th in scoring offense & 347^th in scoring defense.

These are two bad basketball teams, however, North Dakota has shown a bit more on the offensive end this season and as there is no way I’m trusting this Omaha team to cover a spread, I’m taking North Dakota and the points. Good Luck!