The Central Arkansas Bears will travel to Reed Arena to take on the Texas A&M Aggies this Wednesday night in College Basketball action.
The Central Arkansas Bears snapped their 6-game losing streak and improved to 2-9 on the season after defeating the Hendrix College Warriors, 90-56, on December 20th. Central Arkansas was outstanding on both ends of the court and had no trouble pulling away for the victory after going into halftime with a 47-24 lead. Central Arkansas shot 53.0% from the field & 30.8% from beyond the arc while holding Hendrix College to just 35.8% from the field & 15.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Bears was Ibbe Klintman who had 15 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 block, & 3 steals.
On the season, Central Arkansas is averaging 66.3 ppg on 41.7% shooting from the field. The Bears are averaging 6.0 three-pointers per game on 27.3% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Central Arkansas has been led by Darious Hall (12.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.0 spg), Camren Hunter (12.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.9 spg), Collin Cooper (9.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.9 apg, & Jared Chatham (6.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.0 apg).
Defensively, Central Arkansas is allowing their opponents to average 84.7 ppg on 48.1% shooting from the field. The Bears have a rebound margin of -7.1 and a turnover margin of -3.6.
The Texas A&M Aggies won their 3rd straight game and improved to 10-2 on the season after defeating the Dallas Christian Crusaders, 102-52, this past Monday. Texas A&M dominated Dallas Christian on both ends of the floor and had no trouble picking up the win after going into halftime with a 54-18 lead. Texas A&M shot 51.3% from the field & 36.7% from beyond the arc while allowing Dallas Christian to shoot 38.8% from the field & 52.2% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Aggies was Hassan Diarra who had 16 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, & 3 steals.
On the season, Texas A&M is averaging 75.5 ppg on 45.7% shooting from the field. The Aggies are averaging 7.8 three-pointers per game on 37.5% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Texas A&M has been led by Quenton Jackson (12.3 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.6 spg), Marcus Williams (9.6 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.3 spg), Tyrece Radford (9.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.3 apg), & Andre Coleman (7.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.7 spg).
Defensively, Texas A&M is holding their opponents to an average of 61.5 ppg on 39.8% shooting from the field. The Aggies have a rebound margin of 3.3 and a turnover margin of 5.4.
The Bears are 0-6 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up win and just 3-12 ATS in their last 15 road games. The Aggies are 5-4 ATS in their last 9 games and 2-1 ATS in their last 3 home games.
Central Arkansas was able to pick up a much-needed win against Hendrix College, however, this a team that just has struggled on both ends of the court this season as the Bears currently rank just 287th in scoring offense, 348th in scoring defense, & 340th in defensive FG%. Texas A&M has been solid on both ends of the court and come into this game ranked t-101st in scoring offense, 45th in scoring defense, & 16th in turnover margin.
This is a large spread, however, Central Arkansas has been one of the worst defensive teams in College Basketball this season and have lost by 30+ points against any quality team they have faced this season (Saint Louis, Butler, Baylor, Arkansas). Texas A&M was able to get out the rust with a tune-up game on Monday night and as I expect the Aggies to come out sharp on both ends of the court, I think Texas A&M covers this large home spread. Good Luck!