The Belmont Bruins and Ohio Bobcats meet Tuesday in college basketball action at the Convocation Center. The Belmont Bruins are coming off a 26-win season and have won 26 games each of the last three years. The Ohio Bobcats coming off a 17-win season and have won 17 games each of the last three years.
The Belmont Bruins return pretty much all of their key players from last season, and it’s why they’re a popular pick to win the OVC. Nick Muszynski returns after averaging 15 points and 5.6 rebounds, while Luke Smith averaged 12.7 points and 2.9 assists. JaCobi Wood is a third double-digit returning scorer, and Grayson Murphy averaged eight rebounds. Throw in Ben Sheppard and Caleb Hollander, and Belmont is a scary team that should once again top 25 victories on the year.
The Ohio Bobcats say goodbye to their star player in Jason Preston, but they return the rest of their key players from last season. Dwight Wilson III returns after averaging 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds, while Ben Vander Plas averaged 12.8 points and 3.8 assists. Ben Roderick is a third double-digit returning scorer, and Lunden McDay averaged 2.3 rebounds. Ohio has more than enough returning production to be a serious contender in the MAC this season.
The Bruins are 11-5-1 ATS in their last 17 road games and 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Bobcats are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 Tuesday games and 22-8 ATS in their last 30 games overall. The over is 7-2 in Bruins last 9 road games. The under is 5-1 in Bobcats last 6 overall.
This has a chance to be one of the better games on a loaded Tuesday card, as both teams should make a run in their respective conferences. With that said, the Belmont Bruins are more proven entering the season and have better top-level talent. We’re not being asked to lay more than a bucket. Give me Belmont and the cheap line.