South Florida vs Loyola-Chicago Prediction College Basketball Picks 12/7/24

The South Florida Bulls and the Loyola Ramblers meet Saturday in college basketball action from Gentile Arena. Here’s a USF vs Loyola prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best USF vs Loyola pick. We will examine:

The South Florida Bulls’ recent form and player performance

The Loyola Ramblers’ recent form and player performance

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the South Florida Bulls

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Loyola Ramblers

Recent betting trends in games played between USF and Loyola

A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the USF vs Loyola game

South Florida Bulls Betting Preview

The Bulls lost their first two games versus Florida and Charleston, but it’s been a 5-1 run since then. USF’s lone loss in that time was to Middle Tennessee. The wins were over AR-Pine Bluff, West Georgia, Portland, Wright State, and Stetson.

Matched up against the Hatters on Tuesday, the Bulls were up by six points at halftime. South Florida nearly saw their lead disappear in the second but pulled off the win 74-72 in the end. Jayden Reid finished with 23 points and eight assists in the victory.

Loyola Ramblers Betting Preview

Over on the Loyola side, they’ve been unscathed so far through seven games. The victories have come versus Chicago State, Detroit, Eureka, Princeton, Southern Utah, Tulsa, and Eastern Michigan in succession.

In the Eastern Michigan game, the Ramblers scored 39 points in the first half and 37 more from there for a 76-54 blowout win. Loyola’s top scorer was Des Watson with 24 points, four rebounds, and two steals to his credit.

Why the Loyola Ramblers will win

• Loyola (IL) has won each of its last 12 day games at Joseph J. Gentile Arena.
• South Florida has lost the first half in five of its last six games against the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Why the South Florida Bulls will win

• South Florida has won five of its last six games against non-AP-ranked opponents.

USF vs Loyola Prediction

I’ll probably take a stab at USF here. The Bulls have been playing with fire on the scoreboard lately, and they’re coming off another tight win over a struggling Stetson team. South Florida coughed up 11 turnovers in a sloppy game and gave up 47.5 percent shooting from the field—but still won. USF’s last three wins have each come by six points or fewer, and their last two wins have come by a combined three points.

As for Loyola, they blew right past Eastern Michigan in their last game with a nice 54.7 percent shooting and a 42-15 rebounding advantage. The Ramblers have 73 or more points in all seven games so far. It’ll likely take a big offensive push for USF to keep pace, but I think the Bulls are up for it if they play to their capabilities.

Andrew Jett's Pick: South Florida Bulls +10.5