Sacred Heart vs Temple Prediction College Basketball Picks 11/4/24

The Sacred Heart Pioneers are visiting the Temple Owls on Monday, November 4th at the Liacouras Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Temple Owls Prediction.

Temple Owls Preview

The Temple Owls return to action after a challenging 16-20 season, finishing 10th in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) with a 5-13 record. The Owls struggled at home with a record of 5-9 straight up and 6-7 ATS, while they were slightly better on the road, going 5-7. They were 10-16-1 ATS and 10-18-0 in over/under.

The Owls averaged 70.9 points per game offensively, ranking 260th nationally, while allowing 72.9 points per game defensively (212th). Temple struggled mightily with their shot last season, connecting to just 39.6% from the field (355th) and 31.8% from beyond the arc (295th).

Guard Hysier Miller led the team with 15.9 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, followed by Jordan Riley, who added 11.9 points and 6.0 rebounds. Jahlil White contributed 10.1 points and 5.5 rebounds.

Sacred Heart Pioneers Preview

The Sacred Heart Pioneers return to action after a balanced 16-16 season, finishing 3rd in the Northeast Conference (NEC) with a 10-6 record. The Pioneers excelled at home with an 11-5 record but struggled on the road, going just 4-11 but a much better 7-8 ATS. Sacred Heart was 16-13 ATS and 16-12-1 on over/under.

Sacred Heart averaged 74.1 points per game offensively, ranking 156th nationally, while allowing 72.3 points per game on defense (194th). Pioneers shot 45.5% from the field (115th) and were elite from beyond the arc with a 36.5% three-point shooting rate (43rd).

Sacred Heart’s offense was led by forward Nico Galette with 13.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game and Alex Sobel with 12.3 points and 7.4 rebounds.

Why the Temple Owls will win

• Temple has won five of its last six games.
• Sacred Heart has lost five of its last six road day games against non-Conference opponents.
• Sacred Heart has lost the first half in six of its last seven road day games against non-Conference opponents.

Why the Sacred Heart Pioneers will win

• Temple has lost seven of its last eight games at Liacouras Center.
• Sacred Heart has won three of its last four day games.
• Temple has lost the first half in 11 of its last 12 day games against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Total Points Facts

• Five of Temple’s last six games against non-Conference opponents at Liacouras Center have produced a total of 150+ points.
• Four of Sacred Heart’s last five road day games against non-Conference opponents have produced a total of 142 or fewer points.

Matchup/League Facts

• Temple ranked 355th among Division 1 teams for field goal percentage last season (39.6%).
• Temple ranked 21st among Division 1 teams for turnover percentage last season (12.4%).
• Sacred Heart ranked 11th among Division 1 teams for opponent free throw percentage last season (67.5%).
• Sacred Heart ranked T18th among Division 1 teams for blocks per game last season (5.0).

Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Temple Owls Prediction

In this Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Temple Owls Prediction, Temple is coming as a big -13.5 point favorite. Temple is projected at #139 this season, while Sacred Heart are projected as a bottom-40 team, at #328. The Temple Owls were a terrible covering team last season, as they failed to do so in 16 of their 27 games. They weren’t much better at home with a below average 6-7 against the spread and 5-7 overall record. They were inferior to Sacred Heart both offensively and defensively and their Achilles heel was their abysmal shooting. I see the guests keeping the game close in this one, exploiting Temple’s weaknesses. Give me the Sacred Heart Pioneers to cover.

Nikos Lagouretos's Pick: Sacred Heart Pioneers +13.5