The East Carolina Pirates will be at USF Sun Dome to play the South Florida Bulls in an American Athletic Conference matchup. Action begins at 9:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Mar. 2 and can be seen on ESU and ES3.
The Bulls are hoping for a better outcome after their 81-51 loss to Connecticut in their last matchup. Jaleel Cousins was the team’s leading scorer, recording 11 points. The Pirates, meanwhile, are coming off a 65-56 loss to Cincinnati in their last outing. East Carolina lost despite the best efforts of Kentrell Barkley, who recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Bulls won the first game 69-52. Nehemias Morillo had a standout performance in the victory, putting up 18 points, two rebounds, one assist, two steals, and four three-pointers.
The Bulls enter the game with records of 7-22 Straight Up (SU) and 15-13 Against The Spread (ATS). They have an ATS record of 7-2-1 in their last 10 games, but are just 3-7 SU. South Florida has been on fire lately, averaging 71.0 points per game, well over their season average of 63.4. The South Florida defense has done poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 78.2 points per game, well above their season average of 71.4. An area where the Bulls are particularly strong is shot blocking, where they average 5.5 blocks per game, 11th in Division I.
As for their opponent, the Pirates have 11-18 SU and 13-9-2 ATS records.
In their previous meeting this season, South Florida beat East Carolina, bringing its SU record to 6-4 over the Pirates. Additionally, South Florida leads the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3.
Predictions: SU Winner – ECU, ATS Winner – ECU
Notes
South Florida lost its last game by a 30-point margin. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, East Carolina is 3-5. South Florida is 0-6 in blowouts this season.
South Florida has an average field goal percentage of 42.1%. East Carolina is a subpar 5-16 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The South Florida Bulls rank higher based on their field goal percentage (268th) than their effective field goal percentage (326th). The East Carolina Pirates rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (198th) than their field goal percentage (225th).
East Carolina ranks 65th in assists, recording 15.2 per game. South Florida performs worse at 343rd with 10.0 assists per game.
South Florida, the 67th-ranked team in rebounding, register an average of 38.6 rebounds per game. East Carolina does worse, ranked 286th with 33.8.
The South Florida Bulls average 4.5 steals per game. When giving up 4 or more steals, the East Carolina Pirates have a poor record (9-16) this season.
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