Colorado State Rams (10-12) vs UNLV Runnin' Rebels (14-7)
Game Info: Tuesday, January 31, 2023 at 9:00 pm (Moby Arena)
Betting Odds: Colorado State Rams -1.5 -- Over/Under: 145 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The UNLV Rebels will head up to Fort Collins to face the Colorado State Rams in Mountain West play from the Moby Arena on the MWN. UNLV leads the all-time series, 43-20, but Colorado State did win the last meeting a couple of weeks ago by one point.
UNLV moved to 14-7 after beating Nevada at home. The Runnin Rebels and the Wolf Pack traded leads throughout, before the host would pull away from their in-state foes for the six-point victory. UNLV is scoring 76.1 points per game, while allowing 68.1 ppg and shooting 44.7% from the field.
UNLV responded to a slow start in Mountain West action ith home wins over Wyoming and Nevada, and they’ll look to build on that here. The Runnin’ Rebels are 3-6 in conference play, so the winning needs to start now if they want to go dancing again. Former OU guard Elijah Harkless went for a season-high 33 points in the first matchup with CSU, and after dropping 28 points in the win over Wyoming, he leads the Rebels in scoring (17.1). Ole Miss transfer Luis Rodriguez and sophomore guard Keshon Gilbert both average 12 ppg, and the former leads the team in boards at 5.7 rpg.
Colorado State dropped to 10-12 after losing to Boise on the road. The Rams were blitzed by the Broncos, and suffered their biggest loss in conference play, 80-59. Colorado State is scoring 73.9 points per game, while allowing 71.4 ppg, and shooting 48.7% from the floor.
Colorado State has fallen back into the cellar of the Mountain West after dropping their last three games. The Rams have looked like a shell of last year’s roster, and they truly aren’t the same without David Roddy. Isaiah Stevens runs the show for CSU. The senior guard dropped a season-high 33 points in the first matchup with UNLV, and he leads CSU in scoring (18.4) and assists (6.5). John Tonje, a fellow four-year Ram, is averaging career-highs in scoring and rebounding at 13.3 ppg and 5.1 rpg. Patrick Cartier picked things up in December, he’s third on the team with 12.9 ppg.
UNLV is 11-9 against the spread this season, with a 14-6 over/under record. CSU is 7-14 ATS this year, with a 12-8-1 o/u record.
The tables have turned for these two programs this year, and making multiple trips to the Dance over the past three seasons, UNLV and Colorado State find themselves on the outside looking in. Their first meeting went to overtime a couple of weeks ago, and I think this one may be a bit more low scoring due to the teams familiarity with each other. The total is sitting pretty high, so with room for error, I like testing the over for this Mountain West clash.