Poor Shooting Should Continue Between Texas A&M And Creighton

Texas A&M vs. Creighton, 6:30 ET

I probably need to start this by throwing myself right under the bus. Yesterday I said there was no way that UConn would lose their next game and that they would cover the 14.5 spread. Not only did they not cover the game, but they didn't win the game. They lost two games in a row which is, as the kids say, not something I had on the bingo card for this college basketball season. I got the win in the other game, so not that big of a problem. I'll look to get another win in a game between Texas A&M and Creighton.

Texas A&M comes into the game with a 4-2 record and the 20th rank in the nation. To this point in the season, they are averaging 77.3 points per game and 64.7 points allowed. They opened the season with a loss against UCF which was a bit of a surprise, but I supposed understandable as they were on the road. They then ran off four straight wins all on their home floor with none of the games being all that close. This also included a game against Ohio State that saw them win by 14, never really being in jeopardy of losing. Yesterday, they played against Oregon in this Power Tournament in Las Vegas. It ended up being a loss for them as they fell 80-70. That's not a bad offensive output, but they clearly couldn't hold their opponent down and get a stop when needed. Guard Zhuric Phelps continued to play well and put in 20 points for the team, but they combined to shoot just 32.4% from the floor. 

Nov 26, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Creighton Bluejay guard Nick Boyd (2) dribbles as San Diego Aztec forward Jared Coleman-Jones (31) and guard BJ Davis play defense during the second half at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey (Tyge) O'Donnell-Imagn Images

Creighton should present a fairly similar matchup to Texas A&M as they come into the game with the same 4-2 record and are ranked 21st in the nation. For the season, they even average 78 points per game while allowing 66.7 points to opponents. They started their season with four straight wins, not playing anyone of substance in the majority of those games. They dropped their first game right before this tournament, losing 74-63 to Nebraska. Although this was a home game for Creighton, it is still within the state so a mixed crowd may have factored in a bit. Still, it was surprising to see that Nebraska won as 9.5 point underdogs in the game. Yesterday, San Diego State University tore down Creighton and beat them 71-53. The difference in this game really was the shooting efficiency. Creighton shot just 33.9% from the field and San Diego State shot 48.4%. 

I can't say either of these teams look great right now, but something is going on with Creighton (perhaps missing Steven Ashworth) that makes me hesitant to take their side. You would think after losing two straight games they would be itching to get back on the court and play their next to stop the skid. I think mostly they will need to lock in on defense and neither of these teams shot particularly well yesterday. That leads me to the total being too high in this game and I think the right play is to take the under 143.5. I think we get there if we avoid overtime, which with as similar as these teams are is a possibility. 

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