Portland State vs Northern Arizona 2/17/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks will travel to Viking Pavilion to take on the Portland State Vikings this Thursday night in College Basketball action.

The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks dropped to 9-16 on the season after being defeated by the Montana State Bobcats, 72-70, this past Saturday. Northern Arizona trailed by a 39-33 margin at halftime and could not fight all the way back after the Bobcats took a 67-58 lead with 4:29 left in regulation. Northern Arizona shot 42.1% from the field & 34.6% from beyond the arc while allowing Montana State to shoot 47.3% from the field & 36.8% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Lumberjacks was Jalen Cone who had 15 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, & 1 steal.

On the season, Northern Arizona is averaging 69.0 ppg on 41.9% shooting from the field. The Lumberjacks are averaging 9.0 three-pointers per game on 37.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Northern Arizona has been led by Jalen Cone (19.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 3.8 apg), Nik Mains (12.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.0 apg), Keith Haymon (9.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg), & Carson Towt (8.4 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 3.8 apg).

Defensively, Northern Arizona is allowing their opponents to average 73.3 ppg on 45.3% shooting from the field. The Lumberjacks have a rebound margin of 2.8 and a turnover margin of -3.4.

The Portland State Vikings lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 8-15 on the season after being defeated by the Montana Grizzlies, 85-76, this past Saturday. Portland State struggled on both ends of the court against Montana and could not fight back after the Grizzlies took a 73-66 lead with 3:45 left in regulation. Portland State shot 38.2% from the field & 16.7% from beyond the arc while allowing Montana to shoot 57.4% from the field & 68.8% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Vikings was Khalid Thomas who had 11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 blocks, & 3 steals.

On the season, Portland State is averaging 73.1 ppg on 42.5% shooting from the field. The Vikings are averaging 6.3 three-pointers per game on 30.2% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Portland State has been led by James Jean-Marie (12.9 ppg, 8.9 rpg), Khalid Thomas (10.9 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.0 apg, 1.8 spg), Damion Squire (10.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.0 spg), Ezekiel Alley (10.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.3 spg), & Marlon Ruffin (10.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg). Portland State has been without James Jean-Marie since the end of January and should be considered at best, questionable for this matchup.

Defensively, Portland State is allowing their opponents to average 72.7 ppg on 45.1% shooting from the field. The Vikings have a rebound margin of -2.3 & a turnover margin of 3.7.

The Lumberjacks are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games & 4-1 ATS in their last 5 road games. The Vikings are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games, however, are just 4-5 ATS in their last 9 home games.

Northern Arizona, despite being a solid three-point shooting team, has overall struggled on both ends of the court this season as the Lumberjacks come into this game ranked 233^rd in scoring offense, 285^th in scoring defense, & 290^th in scoring defense. Portland State has played much better since going with a smaller lineup and has done a great job forcing turnovers as the Vikings come into this game ranked 14^th in steals per game & 22^nd in turnover margin. Northern Arizona has played well as of late, however, Portland State had no trouble defeating Northern Arizona by a 97-76 margin on the road in late January and as I think the Vikings have similar success on their home court, I’m taking the Vikings to cover this mid-range home spread. Good Luck!