UNC Asheville (5-4) vs Western Carolina (3-5)
December 14, 2024 at 02:00 PM EST
The Line: Betting Odds: UNC Asheville -9 / Western Carolina +9 — Over/Under: 145
The Western Carolina Catamounts and the UNC Asheville Bulldogs meet Saturday in college basketball action from Kimmel Arena. Here’s a Western Carolina vs UNC Asheville prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Western Carolina vs UNC Asheville pick. We will examine:
The Western Carolina Catamounts’ recent form and player performance
The UNC Asheville Bulldogs’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Western Carolina Catamounts
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the UNC Asheville Bulldogs
Recent betting trends in games played between Western Carolina and UNC Asheville
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Western Carolina vs UNC Asheville game
Western Carolina Catamounts Betting Preview
The Catamounts beat Bob Jones and Truett-McConnell in their first three outings, then lost three straight to Wake Forest, Florida State, and Marquette. After another win over Bellarmine, Western Carolina fell again to USC Upstate.
Matched up against USC Upstate last weekend, the Catamounts held a 37-31 edge in the locker room. Western Carolina was outscored 43-31 from there, however, losing 74-68. Leading the team were Bernard Pelote and Cord Stansberry, each with 14 points.
UNC Asheville Bulldogs Betting Preview
Over on the UNC Asheville side, they lost to Alabama and Ohio in their first pair then beat North Florida, SEMO, and Tennessee State in the next quartet. After a loss to George Mason, the Bulldogs have since beaten St. Andrews and Bluefield.
In Wednesday’s Bluefield game, the Bulldogs were up 56-24 by halftime. UNC Asheville cruised from there on 36 more points for a blowout win 92-46. Connor Dubsky was the leading team scorer on 23 points and three assists.
Why the North Carolina-Asheville Bulldogs will win
- North Carolina-Asheville has won 28 of its last 30 games at Kimmel Arena.
- Western Carolina has lost each of its last four road games against non-conference opponents.
- Western Carolina has lost the first half in each of its last four road games.
Why the Western Carolina Catamounts will win
- Western Carolina has won 14 of its last 18 day games.
- North Carolina-Asheville has lost the first half in six of its last eight games against the Southern Conference at Kimmel Arena.
Western Carolina vs UNC Asheville Prediction
I’ll probably lean toward UNC Asheville. There’s not a lot to get excited about here, but it should be a decent matchup. The Bulldogs drilled Bluefield in their last game, shooting 55.7 percent from the field with 38 rebounds. UNC Asheville has 72 or more points in seven of their last eight games, and a combined 212 in their last pair.
As for Western Carolina, they had 19 turnovers (for 15 Spartans points) in their loss to USC Upstate. The Catamounts have been below 70 points in four of the last five games (a 1-4 run) and they’re giving up some pretty healthy totals on the other side. UNC Asheville should have plenty of opportunities in this one.