Arkansas-Little Rock vs Louisiana-Lafayette 2/3/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns will travel to the Jack Stephens Center to take on the Little Rock Trojans this Thursday night in College Basketball action.

The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 9-10 on the season after being defeated by the Georgia Southern Eagles, 66-65, this past Saturday. Louisiana led by a 64-56 margin with just 3:09 left in regulation, however, the Ragin’ Cajun offense feel flat down the stretch and Georgia Southern was able to pull off the come from behind victory after a pair of FT’s by Elijah McCadden gave the Eagles the lead for good with :17 seconds left in regulation. Louisiana shot 37.5% from the field & 25.0% from beyond the arc while allowing Georgia Southern to shoot 44.7% from the field & 35.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Ragin’ Cajuns was Kobe Julien who had 19 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, & 2 steals.

On the season, Louisiana is averaging 70.5 ppg on 41.7% shooting from the field. The Ragin’ Cajuns are averaging 7.8 three-pointers per game on 35.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Louisiana has been led by Jordan Brown (14.5 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 1.2 apg, 1.3 bpg), Kobe Julien (11.3 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.3 apg, 1.1 spg), Theo Akwuba (9.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 1.8 bpg), & Kentrell Garnett (8.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 1.0 spg).

Defensively, Louisiana is allowing their opponents to average 69.1 ppg on 41.8% shooting from the field. The Ragin’ Cajuns have a rebound margin of 3.9 and a turnover margin of -1.2.

The Little Rock Trojans lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 7-11 on the season after being defeated by the Appalachian State Mountaineers, 72-57, this past Saturday. Little Rock trailed by a 35-29 margin at halftime and could not fight back after the Mountaineers took a 67-57 lead with 1:36 left in regulation. Little Rock shot 40.0% from the field & 41.2% from beyond the arc while allowing Appalachian State to shoot 45.3% from the field & 39.1% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Trojans was Myron Gardner who had 16 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, & 2 steals.

On the season, Little Rock is averaging 69.7 ppg on 42.2% shooting from the field. The Trojans are averaging 6.8 three-pointers per game on 32.6% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Little Rock has been led by Nikola Maric (14.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.9 apg), Isaiah Palermo (12.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.4 spg), Marko Lukic (11.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.7 apg), & Myron Gardner (9.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.0 spg). Nikola Marc has missed past couple of weeks due to a foot injury and is at best, questionable for this game.

Defensively, Little Rock is allowing their opponents to average 73.3 ppg on 46.5% shooting from the field. The Trojans have a rebound margin of -3.6 and a turnover margin of 1.7.

The Ragin’ Cajuns are 2-4 ATS in their last 6 games, however, are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 road games. The Trojans are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games & 3-12 ATS in their last 15 games vs. Sun Belt opponents.

Louisiana has been led by their defense which ranks 118^th in defensive FG% & 76^th in steals per game, however, the offense can struggle as the Ragin’ Cajuns rank just 199^th in scoring offense & 287^th in FG%. Little Rock has struggled on both ends of the court this season and come into this game ranked just 213^th in scoring offense, 270^th in FG%, 285^th in scoring defense, & 329^th in defensive FG%.

Louisiana has lost 5 of their last 6 games, however, the Ragin’ Cajuns have been competitive in those losses and come into this matchup as the better team. Little Rock is 6-3 at home this season, however, the Trojans have really struggled on the offense side of the ball as of late, surpassing 60 points just once in their last four games, and as I think Louisiana will have success slowing down the Little Rock offense in this one, I think the Ragin’ Cajuns do enough to cover this mid-range road spread.