The visiting Anteaters hope to send their backers to the pay window on Friday as they look to cover the spread at Honda Center against the Long Beach State 49ers.

It's a game in the Big West Tournament, which will decide the conference title, not to mention deciding which teams make the Field of 68. The game is being played at Honda Center, which makes it technically a neutral site match.

Supporters of the Anteaters have watched them go 12-19 and 16-11-1 ATS on the year, while the 49ers are at 23-8 and 17-12 ATS. In totals betting, the 49ers are 13-15-1, while the Anteaters have a 15-13 mark.



View UC Irvine vs Long Beach State Odds and Stats.

Power Rankings / Prediction:
This game matches up the No. 14 (49ers) and the No. 194 (Anteaters) teams in the league, according to our current NCAAB power rank. A 80-66 result in favor of the 49ers has been projected by the scores prediction engine.



How They Match Up:
Rebounding is always a key handicapping consideration and Anteaters is ranked No. 37 in NCAA hoops at 37.6 per game. Contrast that with Long Beach State’s No. 112 mark in the paint. When it comes to three-point shooting, Long Beach State is the No. 161-ranked team in the country at 6.3 per game, while UC Irvine rates No. 48 at 7.7 per game.

Defensively, UC Irvine features the nation's No. 216-rated defense on the road, allowing 71.3 points per game. Long Beach State, meanwhile, comes in at No. 113 nationally in scoring at home.

In their last action, UC Irvine was a 65-59 Sportsbook on the road against CS Fullerton. They covered the 7.5-point spread as underdogs. UC Irvine got 24 points from Chris McNealy en route to a 65-59 victory over CS Fullerton on Thursday at Honda Center.

Last time out for Long Beach State, they were an 80-46 Sportsbook as they battled UC Davis at home. They covered in the match as a 19.5-point favorite. Long Beach State cruised to victory on Thursday, running UC Davis out of the gym and running up an 80-46 score at Honda Center.