Howard vs South Carolina State Pick – Basketball Predictions & Odds 3/8/23

The South Carolina State Bulldogs and Howard Bison meet Wednesday in the college basketball MEAC Tournament Quarterfinal at the Norfolk Scope Arena. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.

The South Carolina State Bulldogs are averaging 74 points on 42.6 percent shooting and allowing 83.6 points on 49.8 percent shooting. Rakeim Gary is averaging 11.9 points and 2.3 rebounds, while Lesown Hallums is averaging 10.7 points and 3.1 rebounds. Cameron Jones is dishing 2.3 assists and Raquan Brown is grabbing 4.5 rebounds. The South Carolina State Bulldogs are shooting 32.1 percent from beyond the arc and 67.2 percent from the free throw line. The South Carolina State Bulldogs are allowing 39.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 31.5 rebounds per game.

The Howard Bison are averaging 75.4 points on 46 percent shooting and allowing 73.3 points on 45.3 percent shooting. Elijah Hawkins is averaging 13.4 points and 3.6 rebounds, while Steve Settle III is averaging 11.2 points and 1.1 assists. Shy Odom is the third double-digit scorer and Marcus Dockery is dishing 1.1 assists. The Howard Bison are shooting 38 percent from beyond the arc and 72.2 percent from the free throw line. The Howard Bison are allowing 35.1 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 32.1 rebounds per game.

The Bulldogs are 4-0-1 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games and 0-4 ATS in their last 4 Wednesday games. The Bison are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 Wednesday games. The over is 4-1 in Bulldogs last 5 Wednesday games. The over is 6-2 in Bison last 8 overall.

Howard beat South Carolina State twice this season, including a game where they scored 100 points. Howard has had a field day against this Bulldogs defense. The South Carolina State Bulldogs lose in the underdog role by an average of 14.2 points while allowing 50.8 percent shooting. I’ll lay the chalk with Howard.