UTSA (3-3) vs. St. Mary's (7-1)
December 3, 2024 10:00 pm EDT
The Line: St. Mary's -21.5; Over/Under: +145
(Get latest betting odds)
The UTSA Roadrunners and the Saint Mary’s Gaels meet Tuesday in college basketball action from McKeon Pavilion. Here’s a Saint Mary’s vs UTSA prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Saint Mary’s vs UTSA pick.
UTSA Roadrunners Betting Preview
This year the Roadrunners have lumbered to a .500 record through six outings. UTSA has losses to Bradley, Little Rock and Troy in succession. Otherwise it’s been wins over Trinity TX, Merrimack and Houston Christian in that time.
In their game versus the Huskies on Saturday, the Roadrunners were up 35-26 by the break. UTSA was outscored 45-43 the rest of the way in a 78-71 win. Primo Spears was the top team scorer on 31 points and five assists.
Saint Mary’s Gaels Betting Preview
Over on the Gaels’ side, they opened up with seven straight wins over Towson, Chattanooga, Akron, Nebraska, Stanislaus State, Cal Poly and USC. Saint Mary’s took their first loss of the year against Arizona State on Friday, though.
Matched up against the Sun Devils, the Gaels led by two points going into the second half. Saint Mary’s was outscored 36-30 the rest of the way however, losing 68-64 in the end. Jordan Ross led the team on 19 points with seven rebounds and four assists.
Why the Saint Mary’s Gaels will win
- Saint Mary’s has won each of its last 14 night games at University Credit Union Pavilion against non-AP-ranked opponents.
- UTSA has lost each of its last 11 Tuesday night road games against non-Conference opponents.
- Saint Mary’s has won the first half in each of its last 17 games at University Credit Union Pavilion against non-AP-ranked opponents.
Why the UTSA Roadrunners will win
- UTSA has won three of its last four away games when playing with a rest disadvantage.
Saint Mary’s vs UTSA Prediction
I’ll lean toward Saint Mary’s I suppose. That said, with such a thick line you wouldn’t be crazy for going in the opposite direction. The Gaels are coming off a tough loss to a good Arizona State team, but this should be a solid opportunity to get some of that momentum back. Saint Mary’s shot 41.7 percent from the field with a 41-34 rebounding advantage in the loss to the Sun Devils, but did cough up 13 turnovers and missed six of 12 free throws. The 64 points were Saint Mary’s lowest of the season.
As for UTSA, they shot a nice 47.2 percent from the field with an excellent 92 percent (23-of-25) from the line in their latest win over Houston Christian. The Roadrunners did get outmuscled on the boards, however. UTSA has scored well this year themselves with 72 or more points in five of six games. If Saint Mary’s can assert some dominance on the glass though, I like the Gaels to power out the cover. That said, I’m probably staying away.
