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UTEP vs Southern Mississippi 1/8/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (5-8) vs. UTEP Miners (7-7)
January 8, 2022 9:00 pm EDT
The Line: UTEP Miners -9 / Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles +9; Over/Under: 130.5
(Get latest betting odds)

The Southern Miss Golden Eagles will travel to the Don Haskins Center to take on the UTEP Miners this Saturday night in College Basketball action.

The Southern Miss Golden Eagles snapped their 6-game losing streak and improved to 5-8 on the season after defeating the UTSA Roadrunners, 74-73, this past Thursday. Southern Miss was solid on the offensive end against UTSA and was able to hold on for the victory after taking a 66-60 lead with 4:52 left in regulation. Southern Miss shot 49.1% from the field & 30.0% from beyond the arc while allowing UTSA to shoot 38.1% from the field & 40.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Golden Eagles was Jaron Pierre Jr. who had 18 points, 6 rebounds, & 1 assist.

On the season, Southern Miss is averaging 62.3 ppg on 43.3% shooting from the field. The Golden Eagles are averaging 5.5 three-pointers per game on 32.3% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Southern Miss has been led by Tae Hardy (13.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.7 spg), Tyler Stevenson (12.3 ppg, 8. rpg, 1.2 bpg), Isaih Moore (12.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.3 apg, 1.2 bpg), & Jaron Pierre Jr. (9.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.2 apg). Southern Miss will be without Tae Hardy who was lost for the season due to a shoulder injury.

Defensively, Southern Miss is allowing their opponents to an average of 70.3 ppg on 41.5% shooting from the field. The Golden Eagles have a rebound margin of -1.8 and a turnover margin of -3.2.

The UTEP Miners lost their 3rd straight game and dropped to 7-7 on the season after being defeated by the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, 64-52, this past Thursday night. Southern Miss had no answers on the offensive end against the Louisiana Tech defense and could not fight back after going into halftime trailing by a 41-25 margin. UTEP shot just 33.3% from the field & 33.3% from beyond the arc while allowing Louisiana Tech to shoot 41.5% from the field & 26.1% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Miners was Jamal Bieniemy who had 28 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, & 2 steals.

On the season, UTEP is averaging 68.1 ppg on 40.4% shooting from the field. The Miners are averaging 7.4 three-pointers per game on 33.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, UTEP has been led by Souley Boum (18.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.5 spg), Jamal Bieniemy (13.8 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.9 spg), Keonte Kennedy (13.3 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 2.2 apg, 2.1 spg), & Jorell Saterfield (7.5 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 1.2 spg).

Defensively, UTEP is allowing their opponents to average 65.7 ppg on 45.5% shooting from the field. The Miners have a rebound margin of -1.5 and a turnover margin of 3.8.

The Golden Eagles are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games overall & 0-5 ATS in their last 5 Saturday games. The Miners are 5-1-1 ATS in their last 7 games following a double-digit loss at home, however, are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games overall.

Southern Miss has struggled on both ends of the court this season as the Golden Eagles come into this game ranked just 325th in scoring offense, 220th in scoring defense, & 270th in rebound margin. UTEP has been led by their defense which ranks t-103rd in scoring defense & 35th in turnover margin, however, the offense has struggled to score at times and ranked just 267th in scoring offense.

UTEP is the better team, however, the Miners have not been great ATS as of late and it’s hard to trust a team to cover such a big spread when they currently rank just 313th in FG% & 305th in defensive FG%. Southern Miss is coming off a nice road win at UTSA and as I think the Golden Eagles will be able to keep this game somewhat competitive, I think Southern Miss does enough to cover with the points. Good Luck!

Brett Nault's Free Pick: Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles +9

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Brett Nault

Brett has been involved with sports his entire life, whether playing them or betting on them, and loves using his education in data analytics to break down all matchups to get you a competitive edge. Follow Brett Nault on Twitter @BrettCU05

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