East Carolina vs Memphis 1/15/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Memphis Tigers and the East Carolina Pirates meet Saturday in college basketball action from Minges Coliseum. Memphis is 9-6 so far this year. The Tigers lost to UCF in their last game.  As for East Carolina, they’re sitting at 10-5 and fell to Cincinnati in their last appearance. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Memphis put up a 6-5 run over their first 11 games this year with losses to Iowa State, Georgia, Ole Miss, Murray State and Tulane. After wins versus Wichita State, Tulsa and Cincinnati the Tigers fell to UCF on Wednesday. 

In the UCF matchup, Memphis trailed 36-27 at halftime. The Tigers didn’t end up getting any closer in a 74-64 loss. Tyler Harris led the team on 15 points, and Emoni Bates chipped in 12 points with seven rebounds in 29 minutes of work. 

Over on the East Carolina side, they hit an 8-2 run in their first 10 games. The Pirates lost to Oklahoma and Davidson in that stretch. ECU is 2-3 in the five games since, taking out Southern Miss and Tulane while otherwise losing to Liberty, Temple and Cincinnati. 

In Wednesday’s game against Cincinnati, Eastern Carolina got pummeled 49-29 in the first half. The Pirates recovered in the second but still lost 79-71. Vance Jackson was the leading scorer on 35 points, nine rebounds and a smooth 8-of-11 from 3-point range. 

The Pirates are 6-2 ATS in the last eight after an ATS win and 5-2 ATS in their last seven overall. The over is 6-0 in ECU’s last six overall. 

Meanwhile, the Tigers are 1-4 ATS in their last five road games and 2-7-1 ATS in their last 10 overall. Memphis is 5-1 ATS in their last six Saturday games. 

PICK: I’m going to stay with East Carolina. The Pirates had an ugly first half against a tricky Cincinnati team in their last outing, but still ended up shooting 40.7 percent with 35 rebounds and 15 team assists. East Carolina has scored pretty well over the last four games, with 58 or more points in each. 

As for Memphis, they should provide a good matchup here. The Tigers have been at 67 points or fewer in two of their last three but generally they’re a solid offensive team this season. I like this one to be a high-total shootout with ECU eking through a cover.