Indiana State vs Evansville 1/5/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Evansville Purple Aces will travel to the Hulman Center to take on the Indiana State Sycamores this Wednesday night in College Basketball action.

The Evansville Purple Aces lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 4-9 on the season after being defeated by the Northern Iowa Panthers, 83-61, this past Sunday. Evansville struggled to slow down the Northern Iowa offense and could not fight back after the Panthers took a 57-40 lead with 14:57 left in regulation. Evansville shot 40.0% from the field & 27.3% from beyond the arc while allowing Northern Iowa to shot 54.7% from the field & 50.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Purple Aces was Jawaun Newton who had 11 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, & 2 steals.

On the season, Evansville is averaging 61.7 ppg on 40.9% shooting from the field. The Purple Aces are averaging 8.7 three-pointers per game on 32.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Evansville has been led by Shamar Givance (14.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 4.0 apg, 1.5 spg), Jawaun Newton (13.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.0 spg), Noah Frederking (8.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.0 apg, 1.3 spg), & Evan Kuhlman (7.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.5 apg, 1.0 spg).

Defensively, Evansville is allowing their opponents to average 67.1 ppg on 47.0% shooting from the field. The Purple Aces have a rebound margin of -3.6 and a turnover margin of 0.5.

The Indiana State Sycamores won their 4^th straight game and improved to 8-6 on the season after defeating the Bradley Braves, 76-71, this past Sunday. Indiana State was solid offensively against Bradley and was able to hold off the Braves for the victory after taking a 68-64 lead with 4:04 left in regulation. Indiana State shot 44.8% from the field & 42.9% from beyond the arc while allowing Bradley to shoot 40.8% from the field & 32.1% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Sycamores was Micah Thomas who had 18 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, & 3 steals.

On the season, Indiana State is averaging 75.9 ppg on 46.5% shooting from the field. The Sycamores are averaging 9.4 three-pointers per game on 35.2% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Indiana State has been led by Cooper Neese (16.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.8 apg), Cameron Henry (14.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.2 spg), Micah Thomas (12.4 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.8 apg), & Xavier Bledson (12.1 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 4.7 apg, 1.1 spg). Xavier Bledson has missed his last two games due to Covid-19 and is questionable for this matchup.

Defensively, Indiana State is allowing their opponents to average 70.4 ppg on 43.4% shooting from the field. The Sycamores have a rebound margin of 0.9 and a turnover margin of 0.8.

The Purple Aces are 5-13-1 ATS in their last 19 games and just 2-7 ATS in their last 9 games vs. MVC opponents. The Sycamores are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games and 8-0 ATS in their last 8 games at home.

Evansville has struggled on both ends of the court this season as the Purple Aces come into this game ranked just t-328^th in scoring offense, 303^rd in FG%, & 332^nd in defensive FG%. Indiana State has been led by their offense which ranked 97^th in scoring offense, 76^th in FG%, & 50^th in three-pointers made per game, however, the Sycamores have struggled a bit defensively as they come into this game ranked 222^nd in scoring defense & 230^th in defensive FG%.

Evansville didn’t look great in their first game in almost a month against Northern Iowa and I’m not expecting much more from the Purple Aces who come into this game with just a 1-4 record on the road. Indiana State is solid offensively and as they have had plenty of success ATS at home as of late, I think that trend continues and that the Sycamores cover this mid-range spread. Good Luck!