Florida International (6-7) vs Middle Tennessee (9-4)
January 2, 2025 at 07:00 PM EST
The Line: Betting Odds: Florida International +4.5 / Middle Tennessee -4.5 — Over/Under: 148.5
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders and the Florida International Panthers meet Thursday in college basketball action from FIU Arena. Here’s a Middle Tennessee vs FIU prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Middle Tennessee vs FIU pick. We will examine:
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders’ recent form and player performance
The Florida International Panthers’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Florida International Panthers
Recent betting trends in games played between Middle Tennessee and FIU
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Middle Tennessee vs FIU game
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders Betting Preview
The Blue Raiders got off to a solid 5-1 start this year featuring a lone loss to Murray State. Otherwise, it was wins over Oglethorpe, Abilene Christian, Evansville, Ohio, and South Florida. Middle Tennessee would then hit a 2-2 stretch that featured wins over UAB and Rhodes in between losses to Bradley and Belmont. Since then it’s been a 2-1 run. The Blue Raiders beat California Baptist and Lipscomb before a blowout loss to No. 1-ranked Tennessee.
Way back on December 23 versus the Volunteers, Middle Tennessee had their hands full. Incredibly, the Blue Raiders came out of halftime with a 40-34 lead. That edge would quickly evaporate, however, as the Volunteers asserted themselves in the second half on a 48-24 run resulting in an 82-64 defeat. Leading the team in scoring was Camryn Weston, who came off the bench to secure 24 points, two rebounds, and four steals. Tops among the Blue Raiders starters was Kamari Lands with 13 points, one rebound, one assist, and one steal.
Florida International Panthers Betting Preview
Over on the FIU side, they limped to a 2-6 start over their first eight games, but things have been much better since then. The two wins in that early stretch were over Florida National and Cal State Bakersfield. Otherwise, it was losses to Rice, Southern Utah, Howard, Northeastern, Florida Gulf Coast, and Florida Atlantic. Florida International has since been on a 4-1 run over their last five games. The lone loss in that stretch came courtesy of East Carolina. The Panthers took out New College FL, Stetson, IUPUI, and Utah Tech in the other four outings.
In Monday’s matchup with Utah Tech, the Panthers didn’t have too many issues. Florida International stormed to a 47-19 halftime edge, then put it in cruise control during a 47-33 second half for an 80-66 win. The leading scorer came off the bench here: Travis Gray had 15 points with five rebounds and three steals. Among starters, Asim Jones had 14 points and seven assists, while Jonathan Aybar added 13 points with four rebounds and a steal.
Why the Florida International Panthers will win
- Middle Tennessee has lost each of its last seven Thursday road games against the Conference USA.
- Florida International has won four of its last five games.
- Florida International has won the first half in each of its last four games against the Conference USA at Ocean Bank Convocation Center.
Why the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders will win
- Florida International has lost each of its last four night games following a home win.
- Middle Tennessee has won six of its last seven games against Florida International.
- Middle Tennessee has won the first half in six of its last seven night games.
Middle Tennessee vs FIU Prediction
I’m going to try FIU here. The Panthers rolled right past Utah Tech in their last game, hitting 54.5 percent from the field with a 34-32 rebounding edge. It wasn’t a pretty win, though: Florida International coughed up 18 turnovers for 20 Trailblazers points and hit just 13 of 22 free throws (59.1 percent). That said, it’s been a nice 4-1 run for Florida International. They’ve hit 70 or more points in each win during that time. FIU will also have the advantage of having played on Monday. Middle Tennessee hasn’t seen the court since December 23.
Speaking of Middle Tennessee, they looked good early versus the top team in the nation during their last outing. Reality set in during the second half though, and the Raiders ended up getting out-rebounded 40-29 in an 18-point loss. Middle Tennessee has 75 or more points in five of the last six games, so FIU is really going to have to push on offense. With an early surge, I think the Panthers pull it off, though.