In one of those interesting 5-vs-12 games, New Mexico tangles with Long Beach State in the West Regional Thursday afternoon.
The Lobos, Sportsbooks of the Mountain West tournament, are favored by 4.5 points over the 49ers, the dual champs out of the Big West.
The game is being played at Rose Garden, which makes it technically a neutral site match. The 12 seeds have been dominating the 5's against the spread recently, with a 10-4 ATS mark in the past 14 meetings.
The 49ers will try to spoil to the party on Thursday; they are 18-13 ATS against the number this season, while the Lobos are 23-7 ATS. Long Beach State is 14-16-1 on the totals; New Mexico is 16-13-1.
View Long Beach State vs New Mexico Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
The Lobos are listed as 4.5-point favorites at most sportsbooks tracked by Odds Shark, including Sportsbook. Check the total at Sportsbook when you sign up for the web's biggest guaranteed cash bracket game.
Power Rankings / Prediction:
The Odds Shark Power Rankings have the Lobos at No. 11 and the 49ers at No. 15 heading into this contest. Handicapping models at Odds Shark project a 82-78 result in favor of the Lobos.
How They Match Up:
In the paint, the rebound battle will feature New Mexico's No. 29-rated squad against Long Beach State's No. 110-rated roster. And in long-range shooting, New Mexico rates No. 53 in the country with 7.6 per game, while their foes tonight rank No. 127 nationally with 6.6 per match.
Defensively, Long Beach State features the nation's No. 185-rated defense on the road, allowing 70.2 points per game. New Mexico, meanwhile, comes in at No. 69 nationally in scoring at home.
Long Beach State was a 77-64 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against Santa Barbara. They covered the 4-point spread as favorites. Casper Ware poured in a team-high 33 points for Long Beach State on Saturday, as they defeated Santa Barbara 77-64 at Honda Center.
New Mexico was a 68-59 Sportsbook in their most recent outing on the road against San Diego State. They covered the 4.5-point spread as favorites. Tony Snell scored 14 points leading the Lobos to a 68-59 victory over San Diego State at Thomas & Mack Center on Saturday.
Long Beach State 49ers Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 6-4
After playing Santa Barbara are 5-5
After a win are 8-2
New Mexico Lobos Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 4-6
After playing San Diego State are 6-4
After a win are 9-1
A few 49ers at Lobos trends to consider:
New Mexico is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New Mexico's last 6 games
