Akron Zips vs Creighton Bluejays Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 03/21/2024

Game Time: 1:30 pm ET, Thursday, March 21, 2024

Venue:  PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, PA

Where to Watch:  TNT, MAX

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Akron +12.5, Creighton -12.5; Over/Under:  141 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Akron +12.5, Creighton -12.5; Over/Under:  141 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Akron +12.5, Creighton -12.5; Over/Under:  140.5 points

Akron Zips:  24-10 (13-5) (2nd place, MAC)

Creighton Bluejays:  23-9 (14-6) (3rd place, Big East)

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Akron Zips:  3-2  last 5

Creighton Bluejays:  3-2  last 5

Akron is entering this game with a 24-10 record overall, a 13-5 record in conference games, and they are 4-3 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the Kent State Golden Flashes in their last game. Ali Ali led the team in points per game in that game with 18 while Enrique Freeman was next on the team with 17. Ali Ali led the team in assists with 5 in that game while Enrique Freeman led the team in rebounds with 9. They were 39.6% from the field, 27.6% from 3-point range, and 75% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 74 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 65.9 PPG against them. Akron has an ATS record of 15-16-1 this season and their O/U record is 12-20.

Creighton is entering this game with a 23-9 record overall, a 14-6 conference record, and they are 1-2 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a loss against the Providence Friars in their last game. Ryan Kalkbrenner and Trey Alexander each led the team in points in that game with 19 while Baylor Scheierman and Steven Ashworth each were next on the team with 16. Steven Ashworth led the team in assists with 6 in that game while Baylor Scheierman led the team in rebounds with 13. They were 37.9% from the field, 23.1% from 3-point range, and 88.5% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 80.5 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 69.7 PPG against them. Creighton has an ATS record of 17-15 this season and their O/U record is 16-16.

The current betting odds have Creighton listed as a 12.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Creighton has looked really good in their games this season with their 23-9 record overall and their 14-6 conference record in the Big East which was enough to land them one of the 3rd seeds in the NCAA Tournament. They haven't looked great in their neutral site games this year with their 1-2 record in those and they didn't really make a deep run in the Big East Tournament, but they didn't need to either as they had a really good resume and were really good in their non-conference games. Meanwhile, Akron also looked really good in their games this season with their 24-10 record overall and their 13-5 conference record in the MAC. They only finished in 2nd place in their conference during the regular season but they got hot in the MAC Tournament and went on to win it to secure their bid. As hot as Akron has been lately, this is still a team that wasn't the best in a weaker conference during the regular season and even though Creighton only finished 3rd in the Big East, the conference is a lot stronger and contains the defending national champions too. Creighton has looked impressive in a lot of their games against stronger teams this year and they will have no problem ending Akron's hot streak here. The best way to place a bet here is on Creighton to cover the spread in this game. 

Akron Creighton Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Thursday, March 21, 2024 (1:30 pm ET start time) is Creighton 88 Akron 62.

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Akron Zips: 4-9 ATS after playing a game where both teams score 65 points or less. 3-6 ATS after 3 or more consecutive wins. 2-7 ATS after a game forcing the opponent to commit 5 or less turnovers. 20-12 UNDER in all games. 12-5 UNDER when the total is 140 to 149.5. 12-3 UNDER off a win against a conference rival.

Creighton Bluejays: 14-7 ATS off a loss against a conference rival. 5-1 ATS in a postseason tournament game. 24-18 ATS after 3 straight games committing 14 or less turnovers. 10-5 UNDER after one or more consecutive overs. 29-18 UNDER in a postseason tournament game. 

Akron Zips:  None.

Creighton Bluejays:  None.

“That’s on me, we (had) a foul to give and I’ll be honest with you, I knew it. I didn’t want Greg (Tribble) to foul him (since) he already had one, so Ali (Ali) switched on him. I’m looking at (Sullinger) and he’s (about) 30 feet (away), I’m like, I’m not gonna foul a guy 30 feet (away)! He’s five to ten feet behind the 3-point line, and he buries it.” - John Groce after his team’s win against Kent State in their last game of the MAC Tournament on Saturday.

“Obviously, a very physical game. We had some chances late. I’m proud that we didn’t quit. We weren’t quite ourselves defensively for a good portion of the game.” - Greg McDermott after his team’s loss against Providence in their last game of the Big East Tournament on Thursday.

A. Ali 

E. Freeman 

S. Hunter 

N. Johnson 

G. Tribble

T. Alexander 

S. Ashworth 

R. Kalkbrenner 

M. Miller 

B. Scheierman

PPG: E. Freeman (18.1)

APG: A. Ali (2.7)

Reb/G: E. Freeman (12.8)

PPG: B. Scheierman (18.5)

APG: T. Alexander (4.9)

Reb/G: B. Scheierman (8.8)

Coaches:

Akron Zips: John Groce (7th season)

Creighton Bluejays: Greg McDermott (14th season)