The Alabama A&M Bulldogs and the Ohio State Buckeyes meet Thursday in college basketball action from Value City Arena. Alabama A&M enters this game at 4-8 overall. The Bulldogs lost to Vanderbilt last Thursday. As for the Buckeyes, they’re 8-3 on the season and coming off a win over Maine. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Alabama A&M went just 1-5 over their first six games, losing to North Alabama, Tennessee, State, Samford, Norfolk State and LA Tech. Since then it’s been a 3-3 run with wins over Fisk, Lipscomb and Rust for the Bulldogs.
In last Thursday’s matchup versus Vanderbilt, Alabama A&M took a 34-28 deficit into the break. The Bulldogs scored 34 points in the second but couldn’t come back in a 70-62 loss. Messiah Thompson was tops in scoring with 15 points.
Over on the Ohio State side, they went 5-1 over their first six games with a lone loss to San Diego State. The Bulldogs have gone 3-2 in their last five outings, beating St. Francis PA, Rutgers and Maine.
Matched up against Maine last Wednesday, the Buckeyes jumped out to a 47-26 lead by the break. Ohio State outscored the Bears 48-35 from there and won 95-61. Brice Sensabaugh was the leading scorer on 19 points with seven boards and seven assists.
PICK: I’m going to stay with Ohio State in this one. The line's a little too thick to play around with, though. The Buckeyes played well against an overmatched Maine team in their last outing, ultimately shooting a blistering 61.2 percent from the field with 39 rebounds and 23 team assists. Ohio State’s two losses in their last seven games have both come to ranked teams, so they’re playing well overall. As for Alabama A&M, they’ve been capable of playing well in comparable matchups this year but they’ve struggled over their last two games. I don’t think it’ll get any better for the Bulldogs in this one.
