College hoops betting interest focuses on the Montana vs Southern Utah battle Thursday at Dahlberg Arena as the Grizzlies look to defend home court and cover the NCAA basketball point spread.

The Thunderbirds will try to spoil to the party on Thursday; they are 6-7 ATS against the number this season, while the Grizzlies are 6-5-1 ATS. Southern Utah is 3-6 on the totals; Montana is 4-4-1.



View Southern Utah vs Montana Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Bettors looking to back visiting Southern Utah before tip-off in this one found them as 14.5-point underdogs over at Sportsbook earlier.

Power Rankings / Prediction:
The Odds Shark Power Rankings have the Grizzlies at No. 207 and the Thunderbirds at No. 273 heading into this contest. Handicapping models at Odds Shark project a 72-61 result in favor of the Grizzlies.



How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Montana's No. 120 nationally ranked offense (70.1 points per game) against a Thunderbirds defense that sits as the No. 287 at 71.7 PPG. The Grizzlies have been averaging 46.3% from the field, more than the Thunderbirds have managed so far this season (41.1% on average).

Comparing how these foes stack up statistically, Southern Utah owns the country's No. 327-rated mark, allowing 79.2 points per game on the highway. Montana, on the other hand, rates No. 155 in scoring at home.

Last time out for Southern Utah, they were a 54-53 loser as they battled Idaho State at home. They failed to cover in the match as a 7.5-point favorite. Southern Utah suffered a 54-53 loss against Idaho State on Saturday, getting 17 points from Damon Heuir in a losing effort at Centrum Arena.

Montana was an 85-77 Sportsbook in its last match on the road against Northern Colorado. They covered the 6-point spread as favorites. The Grizzlies got a terrific 26-point effort from Kareem Jamar as Montana defeated Northern Colorado 85-77 on Saturday at Butler-Hancock Pavilion.


Southern Utah Thunderbirds Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Montana State are 2-0
After playing Idaho State are 5-5
After a loss are 5-5

Montana Grizzlies Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Montana State are 8-2
After playing Northern Colorado are 8-2
After a win are 7-3

A few Thunderbirds at Grizzlies trends to consider:
Southern Utah is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games on the road
Southern Utah is 1-8 SU in its last 9 games on the road
Montana is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Montana is 17-1 SU in its last 18 games at home
Montana is 4-1-1 ATS in its last 6 games


Next up:
Southern Utah at Montana State, Monday, January 21
Montana home to Montana State, Saturday, January 19