Montana vs Northern Colorado Predictions and Betting Preview
Sportsmemo handicapper JM Sports offers his Montana vs Northern Colorado betting preview in the Big Sky Conference for Thursday, March 3. At the time of posting, the Grizzlies are a 3.5-point home favorite against the road Bears, with the total sitting at 147 points.
Check out our College Basketball Free Picks page for betting thoughts from some of the country’s top handicappers.
Thursday, March 3 | Big Sky Conference Betting Notes |
---|---|
Point Spread: | Montana Grizzlies -3.5 vs Northern Colorado Bears |
Total: | 147 Points |
Game Time: | 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT |
Arena: | Dahlberg Arena, Missoula, MT |
TV: | ESPN+ |
Montana vs Northern Colorado Analysis
Thursday’s game in Montana puts two of the top 5 Big Sky teams head to head for the second time this season.
This time North Colorado heads to Montana as they look to recreate the results from their first meeting this season, taking the win by 3 points on their home court.
This time, Montana gets to lace-up the shoes on their hardwood, potentially without Mack Anderson. While Anderson doesn’t have extensive involvement, he has been a starter for most of the season, and Montana doesn’t possess the depth that other teams in the nation have.
The next man up mentality could be important for Montana if Anderson can’t go.
Bears Bank on Three Point Shot
Northern Colorado holds the advantage in conference standings thus far in the season, sitting at the 4th position and winning 67% of their conference games, posting a 12-6 record.
No. Colorado has played some of their best ball as we near the tournament and the excitement of March basketball, as they have won seven of their last nine games, thanks in part to an offense that has shot 50% or better in four of the last seven games!
Although, the offense has had to overcome some obstacles and fight throughout the entirety of the game, especially because the defense has allowed the opposition to shoot 54.9% or better in three of the previous six games they have played.
This Northern Colorado team has been relatively consistent this season though, they are 17-13 on the year and shooting nearly 48% on the year, resulting in 78.6 PPG on average, yet the defense has allowed almost 77 points on the year.
Playing on the road has been a little bit of a weakness for this team though, they are one game under .500 with an 8-9 record, but the games have been close, as they have been outscored by under two points per game.
History shows that Northern Colorado may have to be the team fighting from behind, even though they sit ahead in the standings, road teams off a home win where they put up 85+ points in March are just 28-63, winning under 31% of the time in the last five season (22-53 as a dog or pick, 29.3% win percentage).
Yet, an over-producing offense and an under-producing defense has been the story of the year for this team. They have put up nearly six PPG more than opposing defenses have allowed on average.
The defense has allowed opposing offenses to score over five points more than they average on the year. No. Colorado is the 6th best team in the country in effective field goal percentage, putting up the 10th best shooting percentage from 3PT range, and the 14th best shooting percentage from inside the arc, while handling the ball with confidence and limiting turnovers lost.
On the other hand, the defense is ranked 324th in the county in effective FG% allowed, allowing the 5th worst shooting percentage from beyond the arc to the opposition and ranking just 344th in forced turnover percentage!
Montana Must Get Better on Defense
Montana has struggled down the stretch as we head to the conclusion of the regular season, they have lost five of the last eight games on the season and have allowed the last three teams all to shoot over 51%!
This Montana team lost just six games in the first 21 games on the season, and now they have dropped five out of eight. Regardless, Montana is still 14-1 on the season at home!
They have shot over 48% on their home court, putting up nearly 79 PPG on their court, while allowing opponents to just barely surpass 58 points per game on 37.7% shooting!
Playing the conference has been a positive note for this Montana team too, with an impressive 11-7 record against conference opponents, yet their weakness has been the play of their defense and that could be very apparent tonight, even though they are playing a home conference game.
Montana has played four games against top-100 offensive units this season (including the first match-up against Northern Colorado) and they have yet to win against an offense of that caliber. They are 0-4 straight up and allowing 82.5 PPG to those units!
They may be 22-12 against Northern Colorado since 1997, but they have struggled this season, they have been able to protect the ball and limit turnovers on the offensive side, but nearly 23% of their points this season have come from the free throw line, that’s the 5th most in the nation, and not in a statistic that is ideal to hold a top 5 ranking.
They are one of the best free throw shooting teams in the nation, but they have struggled to produce points from the other offensive aspects.
On the defensive side, they are allowing nearly 23% of the oppositions points to come from the charity stripe, producing easy opportunities for the opponents to put up points.
Montana has struggled to stop opposing offenses, ranking 333rd against the 3 point shot and 239th against effective field goal percentage overall! They are going to need more then a 22-12 head-to-head record to take a win in this one.
Yet, Montana is 8-2 against the spread this season after failing to cover two of the last three games overall, putting up 75.1 PPG in those games and winning by 9.2 PPG, but they are just 1-9 against the spread in the last two years after scoring 80 or more points in the previous game.
Montana vs Northern Colorado Prediction
The biggest similarity between these teams recently is their uncanny ability to put games over the total, Montana has gone over in eight straight games, and Northern Colorado has gone over the total in five of the last six games.
The last 14 combined games have resulted in points, lots of points, both posted and allowed! Defense hasn’t played much of a role in either teams games in recent games, so offense seems to be the key, which offense can shine? Or will a defense show up for either one of these teams tonight in Montana?
Predictions
1. Northern Colorado +3.5 – This is a small prediction, this Northern Colorado team has been noticeably hotter of late but it is hard to bet against Montana at home this season.
2. Over 147.5 – This is looking like the better bet! Both teams are trending towards points, points scored and points allowed, and with Montana allowing over 82 PPG to top-100 offensive units, I believe Northern Colorado is set to put up yet another shooting frenzy.
Interested in placing a bet on tonight’s Montana vs Northern Colorado contest? DraftKings is offering a $1,000 Deposit Bonus for first-time bettors in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Tennessee, Michigan, Virginia, Wyoming, Arizona and Louisiana.
💰Alright, that’s a little more like it. Once again, apologies to those that purchased and followed the $2 Tuesday loser, but hopefully you made a good chunk back with us last night. Overall, we’ve enjoyed a fantastic NBA and NCAAB hoops season.
➡️https://t.co/SEjQO6eaRz pic.twitter.com/atPU7GksGI— GoldSheet (@thegoldsheet) March 3, 2022
Montana vs Northern Colorado GoldSheet Preview
College Basketball Stat Sheet
GoldSheet prepares a daily college basketball stat sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Thursday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s Montana vs Northern Colorado contest.
NCAAB Odds Screen
Sportsmemo’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the college basketball point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Thursday’s NCAAB games, including this Montana vs Northern Colorado showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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