Manhattan vs Niagara 1/8/23 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Niagara Purple Eagles and the Manhattan Jaspers meet Sunday in college basketball action from Draddy Gymnasium. Niagara is 9-5 so far this season. The Eagles beat Fairfield in their last game. As for Manhattan, they’re sitting at 4-10 after a loss to Canisius on Friday. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Niagara went 5-5 over their first 10 games with wins over Central AR, Stetson, D’Youville, Quinnipiac and Eastern Michigan. The Eagles have since beaten Binghamton, Mount St. Mary’s, Rider and Fairfield. 

Matched up against Fairfield on Friday, the Eagles overcame a first-half deficit to force overtime. Niagara scored 14 points in the extra period for a 77-69 victory. Aaron Gray had a nice game on 30 points with five rebounds. 

Over on the Manhattan side, they were 3-7 after 10 outings with wins over only Mount St. Vincent, Army and Fairfield. The Jaspers would beat Marist then fall to Saint Peter’s, Quinnipiac and Canisius. 

In the Canisius game, the Jaspers were outscored 32-20 in the first half. Manhattan posted a 37-32 run from there but still lost 64-57. Josh Roberts doubled on 13 points and 11 boards, while both Samir Stewart and Anthony Nelson scored 13 points apiece. 

PICK: I’ll probably stick with Niagara. The Eagles are on a nice run right now and they’re playing well—despite having a little trouble dispatching a struggling Fairfield team in their last game. Niagara hasn’t exactly been lighting up the scoreboard; they’ve hit more than 67 points just twice in the last eight games. Still, the Eagles should be able to handle Manhattan. The Jaspers have scored just 57 points in two of their last three games and probably won’t put up too much of a fight on offense here.