Many eyes in the college basketball world will be on Bartow Arena Saturday as host UAB looks to handle the East Carolina Pirates in NCAAB action.

Supporters of the Pirates have watched them go 9-10 and 4-7 ATS on the year, while the Blazers are at 7-12 and 7-9-1 ATS. In totals betting, the Blazers are 1-16, while the Pirates have a 5-6 mark.



View East Carolina vs UAB Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
On the Sportsbook NCAAB line for this matchup, UAB sat as 7-point favorites.

Power Rankings / Prediction:
According to new college basketball power rankings here, it's the No. 112-ranked Blazers and the No. 34-rated Pirates in this matchup. Computer formulas aimed at predicting NCAAB scores point to a 70-62 win for the Pirates on Saturday.



How They Match Up:
Rebounding is always a key handicapping consideration and Pirates is ranked No. 97 in NCAA hoops at 36.3 per game. Contrast that with UAB’s No. 145 mark in the paint. When it comes to three-point shooting, UAB is the No. 275-ranked team in the country at 5 per game, while East Carolina rates No. 78 at 7.3 per game.

Defensively, East Carolina features the nation's No. 128-rated defense on the road, allowing 68.3 points per game. UAB, meanwhile, comes in at No. 316 nationally in scoring at home.

East Carolina was a 72-60 loser in their most recent outing at home against Southern Miss. They failed to cover the 3.5-point spread as underdogs. The Pirates got 21 points from Miguel Paul, but it was Southern Miss that prevailed in a 72-60 final on Wednesday at Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

UAB won its last outing, a 56-49 result against Marshall on January 25. They covered in that game as a 9.5-point underdog. UAB got 21 points from Cameron Moore en route to a 56-49 victory over Marshall on Wednesday at Cam Henderson Center.


East Carolina Pirates Trends:
When playing on Saturday are 4-6
Before playing Southern Methodist are 2-4
After playing Southern Miss are 5-5
After a loss are 2-8

UAB Blazers Trends:
When playing on Saturday are 6-4
Before playing Houston are 9-1
After playing Marshall are 7-3
After a win are 5-5

A few Pirates at Blazers trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 4 of East Carolina's last 5 games when playing on the road against UAB
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of East Carolina's last 6 games on the road
East Carolina is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
East Carolina is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against UAB
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of UAB's last 5 games
UAB is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing East Carolina
UAB is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against East Carolina
The total has gone OVER in 4 of UAB's last 5 games when playing at home against East Carolina


Next up:
East Carolina home to Southern Methodist, Wednesday, February 1
UAB home to Houston, Wednesday, February 1