Howard vs. South Carolina State MEAC Tournament Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats & Best Bets – Wednesday, March 8, 2023

The top-seeded Howard Bison (19-12, 11-3 MEAC) are 7.5-point favorites in the MEAC Tournament over the No. 8 seed South Carolina State Bulldogs (5-25, 2-12 MEAC) on Wednesday at Norfolk Scope. The game tips at 6:00 PM and airs on ESPN+, with both teams hoping to move one step closer to an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament bracket. The point total is 155 for the matchup.

Howard vs. South Carolina State Odds

• Howard odds to win: -355
• South Carolina State odds to win: +277
• Spread: Howard (-7.5)
• Total: 155

Howard vs. South Carolina State Promo Codes

Game Time and Information

• Date: Wednesday, March 8, 2023
• Time: 6:00 PM ET
• TV: ESPN+
• Where: Norfolk, Virginia
• Venue: Norfolk Scope

Who Will Win Howard vs. South Carolina State?

Howard and South Carolina State Betting Trends, Records Against the Spread

Howard has a 3-1 record against the spread when favored by 7.5 points or more this season.

When it has played as at least a 7.5-point underdog this season, South Carolina State is 8-11 against the spread.

The two teams average a combined 5.6 fewer points per game (149.4) than this game’s over/under of 155 points.

Opponents of these two teams have averaged a combined 156.9 points per game, 1.9 more than the point total for this matchup.

The average point total for Howard’s games this year is 6.4 fewer points than the total of 155 in this matchup.

The average total in Bulldogs games this year is 2.6 more points than the point total of 155 in this outing.

The Bison have gone 15-13-0 ATS this season.

The Bulldogs are 13-15-1 against the spread this season.

Howard Stats & Insights

Howard is outscoring opponents by 2.1 points per game with a +64 scoring differential overall. It puts up 75.4 points per game (93rd in college basketball) and allows 73.3 per outing (274th in college basketball).

Howard wins the rebound battle by three boards on average. It records 32.1 rebounds per game, which ranks 155th in college basketball, while its opponents grab 29.1 per outing.

The Bison connect on 8.1 three-pointers per game (94th in college basketball) at a 38% rate (17th in college basketball), compared to the 7.5 their opponents make while shooting 35.1% from deep.

Howard averages 93 points per 100 possessions on offense (203rd in college basketball), and allows 90.4 points per 100 possessions (142nd in college basketball).

The Bison put up 82.9 points per game in home games, compared to 69.1 points per game in road games, a difference of 13.8 points per contest.

South Carolina State Stats & Insights

South Carolina State has been outscored by 9.6 points per game (posting 74 points per game, 125th in college basketball, while giving up 83.6 per outing, 364th in college basketball) and has a -289 scoring differential.

South Carolina State loses the rebound battle by an average of 2.4 boards. It records 31.3 rebounds per game (211th in college basketball) compared to its opponents’ 33.7.

South Carolina State connects on 6.9 three-pointers per game (234th in college basketball) at a 32.1% rate (295th in college basketball), compared to the 8.4 per contest its opponents make, shooting 39.8% from beyond the arc.

South Carolina State puts up 87.4 points per 100 possessions (320th in college basketball), while allowing 98.8 points per 100 possessions (345th in college basketball).

The Bulldogs are putting up more points at home (79.8 per game) than away (71.1).

Howard Key Players to Watch

Elijah Hawkins leads the Bison in points and assists per game, scoring 13.4 points and distributing 5.9 assists.

William Settle is Howard’s best rebounder, pulling down an average of 6.1 boards in each contest while scoring 11.2 points per game.

Marcus Dockery makes more threes per game than any other member of the Bison, knocking down shots from beyond the arc at a clip of 2.1 per contest.

The Howard steals leader is Hawkins, who averages 1.7 takeaways per game, while its blocks leader is Settle, who compiles 0.8 rejections per contest.

South Carolina State Key Players to Watch

The Bulldogs’ Rakeim Gary puts up enough points (11.9 per game) and assists (2.7 per game) to top the team’s leaderboards.

Davion Everett’s stat line of 5.6 rebounds, 6.5 points and 0.8 assists per game helps him grab the top spot on the South Carolina State rebounding leaderboard.

Gary is dependable from three-point range and leads the Bulldogs with 1.8 made threes per game.

Jordan Simpson (1.1 steals per game) is the steal leader for South Carolina State while Dallas James (0.9 blocks per game) is the block leader.

Howard vs. South Carolina State Prediction

• Pick ATS:

  Howard (-7.5)
  

• Pick OU:

  Under (155)
  

• Prediction:
  Howard 81, South Carolina State 71

How to Bet on Howard vs. South Carolina State

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