Gauchos Visit Fresno State in College Hoops

As far as college basketball games go, Monday’s matchup between UCSB and Fresno State is evenly matched. That’s not necessarily a good thing, as both teams are pretty much middle of the pack. And both teams turn the ball over far too much. But on a night without many games, it will be one of the better ones on the slate. The UCSB vs Fresno St betting trends see the Bulldogs dead even at home and the total is 141, down from 144.5..

Santa Barbara Struggling Defensively

Scoring hasn’t been much of a problem for Santa Barbara so far. The Gauchos are shooting an impressive 56.1% from the field and 39.2% from 3-point range. UCSB is No. 5 in Ken Pomeroy’s effective field goal percent. A bit of that is due to having the likes of Lemoyne and Westmont on the schedule. But the Gauchos are shooting the bell well.

Santa Barbara isn’t playing very good defense and that’s why it’s 2-2 despite an offense averaging 84.8 points per game. The Gauchos are allowing 80.8 points per game and opposing teams are shooting 47.5% from the field. While UCSB was able to hold Lemoyne and Westmont under 80 points, both Portland State and UTEP scored more. The Gauchos lost both games. Santa Barbara is 0-2-1 against the college basketball lines and 3-0 in totals.

Bulldogs Being Hurt From the Outside

Fresno State is 3-2 on the season, although one of those wins was against Fresno Pacific. The Bulldogs are 2-2 against fellow Division I schools. Fresno State is 1-3 against the college basketball betting odds and 4-0 in totals.

The Bulldogs are doing a decent job offensively, shooting 49.3% and scoring 75.6 points per game. It’s taking Fresno State a little while to get going, as the Bulldogs average 29.8 points in the first half and 45.8 points in the second. Foul shooting is a little lower than you’d like it to be at 66.3%. That will cost Fresno during the season if it doesn’t pick-up at least a little bit.

Defensively, the Bulldogs have been horrible defending the 3-pointer. Fresno State is allowing opposing teams to hit 40% of their 3-pointers and you can’t have that. The Bulldogs allow 45.8% from the field overall.

What to Expect

If the first few games of the season are any indication, you can expect both teams to make some shots. But you can expect both teams to make turnovers, as well. The two teams rank No. 355 and No. 356 in turnover percentage, with both teams coughing up the ball roughly 24% of the time. That’s going to limit the number of shots you get off, making it especially rough because both teams shoot well.

The Bulldogs play at a slightly slower pace than UCSB. But the Gauchos don’t run up-and-down the court, either. The tempo should be pretty average, although Fresno likes to focus on defense a little bit more at home.

Who to Bet On?

The UCSB vs Fresno St betting trends show the Gauchos have been a good over team on the road the past 2+ seasons, going 18-9. But the Bulldogs are just 12-19 at home over the same time span. Fresno State did go over the number in its only home game of the season against Morgan State. The number of turnovers could have an impact on the total here. Teams don’t get

Santa Barbara won last year’s meeting at home, coming away with a 61-54 victory. The total in that game was 130.5, so the number is 14 points higher this year. But with the way the teams are scoring, you really can’t go any lower than that.

The UCSB vs Fresno St betting trends have the Bulldogs in a rough spot. Fresno is 0-5 against the spread as a home favorite of 3 points or less the past 2+ seasons. That makes it tough to pull the trigger on them here even if it is a revenge game.

The total looks to be a bit on the low side, especially when you consider the 7-0 combined over/under record of the two teams. But the under does make the most sense, especially if the Bulldogs decide to play Fresno State basketball for the home fans. Take the under 141 for one of your NCAAB picks Monday night.

UCSB vs Fresno St betting trends

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