Portland (3-6) vs UMKC (4-7)
December 10, 2024 at 10:00 PM EST
The Line: Betting Odds: Portland -1 / UMKC +1 — Over/Under: 145
The Kansas City Kangaroos and the Portland Pilots meet Tuesday in college basketball action from Chiles Center. Here’s a UMKC vs Portland prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best UMKC vs Portland pick. We will examine:
The Kansas City Kangaroos’ recent form and player performance
The Portland Pilots’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Kansas City Kangaroos
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Portland Pilots
Recent betting trends in games played between UMKC and Portland
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the UMKC vs Portland game
Kansas City Kangaroos Betting Preview
The Kangaroos went .500 through their first eight games this year. The losses in that time were to Iowa State, Creighton, American, and Albany. Since then it’s been three more losses to Southeast Missouri State, Idaho, and Montana State.
In the Montana State game on Saturday, the Roos were down 34-23 in the locker room. Kansas City didn’t get any closer in the end, falling 74-62. Davontae Hall was the leading scorer with 18 points and three steals off the bench.
Portland Pilots Betting Preview
Over on the Portland side, they lost to UC Santa Barbara and Oregon in their first four games. It’s been a 1-4 stretch since then with losses to South Florida, Ohio, Princeton, and Kent State around a lone 2OT win versus Denver.
Back on Friday versus Kent State, the Pilots came out of the break with a 31-28 deficit. Portland fell further behind in the second half on a 45-29 run and lost 76-57. Bol Dengdit was tops in the losing effort with 12 points.
Why the Portland Pilots will win
- Kansas City has lost each of its last six night games against non-conference opponents.
- Portland has won four of its last five games at Earle A. & Virginia H. Chiles Center against non-AP-ranked opponents.
Why the Kansas City Roos will win
- Portland has lost nine of its last 10 night games against non-conference opponents.
- Kansas City has won the first half in 13 of its last 17 games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
UMKC vs Portland Prediction
I’ll stay with UMKC. Probably not touching this one, though. The Roos shot just 36.2 percent from the floor in their latest loss versus Montana State but did win the rebounding battle 34-32 and shot well from the line (14-of-17). Kansas City has given up 74 or more points in three straight games though, with two of those being 80 or more.
As for Portland, they’re coming off a rough showing as well. The Pilots hit just 34.8 percent shooting with a 40-29 rebounding deficit in the Kent State loss. Portland has surrendered 74 or more points in five straight games themselves, so we could have a pretty wild game here. I’ll lean toward UMKC on the win/cover but I’m probably staying away.