Sam Houston State vs Abilene Christian 2/17/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Abilene Christian Wildcats and the Sam Houston State Bearkats meet in college basketball action from the Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum on Thursday night.

The Abilene Christian Wildcats will look to add to their current six-game winning streak after a 77-63 win over Tarleton State last time out. Coryon Mason leads the Wildcats in scoring with 12.3 PPG while Airion Simmons has 11.6 PPG with a team-high 6 RPG to lead the Wildcats on the glass this season. Mahki Morris has 10.3 PPG to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for ACU so far this year while Damien Daniels has a team-high 3.3 APG to lead the Wildcats in assists. As a team, Abilene Christian is averaging 78 PPG on 44.6% shooting from the field, 31.7% from three and 73.6% from the foul line while allowing 66.8 PPG on 43.5% shooting from the field and 33.7% from three this season.

The Sam Houston State Bearkats will try to find some consistency after alternating wins and losses in each of their last five games after a 72-59 win over Chicago State last time out. Savion Flagg leads the Bearkats in scoring and rebounding with 19.4 PPG and 7.9 RPG while Demarkus Langley has 10.6 PPG as the only other Bearkat to score in double figures so far this season. Jaden Ray also has a team-high 4.3 APG as well this season. As a team, Sam Houston State is averaging 70.1 PPG on 42.8% shooting from the field, 35.7% from three and 58.2% from the foul line while allowing 63.8 PPG on 40.8% shooting from the field and 31.7% from three this season.

Abilene Christian is 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games overall and 1-4 ATS in their last 5 road games while the over is 4-1 in their last 5 games against a team with a winning record. Sam Houston State is 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games overall and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 home games while the under is 4-1 in their last 5 games as a favorite.

I get why it’s tempting to back Abilene Christian as an underdog, but while the Wildcats have had success on the road as of late, beating Tarleton State, Lamar and UTRGV is different than beating a Sam Houston State team that’s 9-2 SU at home in a near pick ‘em spot. The Bearkats have had their ups and downs as of late, but they’ve been a solid team in conference play for the most part and I think backing them at home is the way to go here.