Portland at Loyola Marymount Prediction - Basketball Picks 1/26/23

Loyola Marymount Lions (14-7) vs Portland Pilots (11-11)

Game Info: Thursday, January 26, 2023 at 10:00 pm (Albert Gersten Pavilion)

Betting Odds: Loyola Marymount Lions -65 -- Over/Under: 151.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds

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The Portland Pilots will head down to Los Angeles and face Loyola Marymount Lions in WCC action from the Gersten Pavilion. LMU leads the all-time series, 21-20, after winning the previous matchup late in December, 92-72. 

Portland moved to 11-11 after beating Pepperdine at home. The Pilots jumped out to a big halftime lead, and held on to take down the Waves by 16 points. Portland scores 78.8 points per game, while allowing 68.6 ppg and shooting 46.3 from the floor.

Portland has won three of their last four games after getting off to a slow start in conference play, but they’ll face an uphill battle here in Los Angeles. Tyler Robertson runs the show for Portland. The 6’6 swingman scored 23 points in the win over USF, and he’s posting a nice, well-rounded line of 14.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, and a team-lead 5.5 apg. Junior forward Moses Wood went for a season-high 26 points against USD, and he leads the Pilots in scoring (14.8) and rebounding (6.1). Kristina Sjolund joins him up front, and after double-doubles versus Gonzaga and San Francisco, he’s up to 13.1 ppg and 5.2 rpg.

Loyola Marymount improved to 14-7 after beating Gonzaga in Spokane. The Lions did the improbable after competing with the Zags for 40 minutes, and hit a game-winner to walk away with the 68-67 victory. LMU is scoring 76.2 points per game, while allowing 69.7 ppg, and shooting 45.1% from the field.

LMU picked up one of the biggest wins in school history when they defeated Gonzaga last week, and they’ll look to keep things going here. The Lions sit at 4-3 in WCC play, and with a favorable home stretch with Portland and Pepperdine this weekend, they have a chance to climb the standings. Cam Shelton is really thriving in the lead role for LMU. The 6’2 guard went for a season-high 28 points in the win over USD, and he followed it up with 27 points and the game winner versus Gonzaga. Shelton is averaging team leads in scoring (18.9) and assists (4.5), while grabbing 6.2 rpg. Four-year starter Keli Leaupepe leads the Lions in rebounding at 6.9 rpg, while scoring 14.2 ppg. 

Portland is 10-10 against the spread this season, with a 12-8 over/under record. LMU is 12-8 ATS this year, with a 12-8 o/u record.

Loyola heads back to LA riding an all-time high, and it’s unlikely they follow up such a monumental moment with a let down here. The battle of Tyler Robertson and Cam Shelton should be a good one, but I like another strong effort from the latter at home. The Lions are 9-2 in Los Angeles, and the Pilots are 1-6 on the road, and those trends will likely continue here. Take LMU’s spread for this WCC clash. 

The pick in this article is the opinion of the writer, not a PickDawgz site consensus.

Mitch's Take...

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