URI vs Providence Odds, Pick
| Rhode Island Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+13.5 -110 | 141.5 -110o / -110u | +725 |
| Providence Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-13.5 -110 | 141.5 -110o / -110u | -1400 |
Rhode Island may not have the biggest population, but the state's basketball fandom isn't lacking.
The storied rivalry between the Rhode Island Rams and Providence Friars renews on Saturday. The Rams enter the contest with a 5-2 record, fresh off an exciting win over a really good Yale squad.
Meanwhile, Providence enters off a relatively relaxing victory over Wagner.
Rhode Island Rams
The Rams struggled in their two games against high-major competition, losing by 21 to Washington State and 11 to Northwestern. They'll look to buck the trend against their most important high-major opponent to date.
URI's strength is pretty easy to spot. Jaden House, Zek Montgomery and Luis Kortright are the team's top three scorers, and they make up the Rhody backcourt.
The Rams' offensive recipe is to rely mostly on House and Montgomery. Both have the size and athleticism to score against most defenses, and both shoot it efficiently from deep. Montgomery was just another guy at Bradley, but he's morphed into an all-conference-caliber player at Rhode Island.
Archie Miller is finally getting his imprints on the Rams in his second year in Kingston. Last year, Rhody had an abysmal effective field goal percentage of 44%, which finished in the bottom-five nationally.
This year? 54.2%, good for 55th nationally.
You look for marked improvement in the second season of a coach's tenure, and Miller is improving the Rams.
Providence Friars
The Friars have looked solid but inconsistent in Kim English's first season on campus. Providence holds a couple of solid wins, but it hasn't looked dominant at any point this season.
And this is one of the biggest games of English's early tenure.
Providence shoots an excellent 56.7% from 2-point range, and it doesn't have a ton of shooters.
The shooting success hinges on freshman Garwey Dual and Ticket Gaines to figure things out when defenses focus on the paint. The highly-touted freshman Dual can completely transform this Providence offense.
This is the perfect type of game for Providence's frontcourt to assert its dominance. URI is super inexperienced up front, so Bryce Hopkins and Josh Oduro have a clear advantage.
If the perimeter shots don't fall, Providence can dominate the offensive glass against a below-average rebounding team.
Rhode Island vs. Providence
Betting Pick & Prediction
If the past is any indication, Providence struggles to blow out opponents. It beat Milwaukee by 10 and Lehigh by 14 — both ranked outside the top 250 in KenPom.
Rhode Island is miles better than both teams, so that feeds into my reasoning for backing the Rams.
Plus, Rhode Island has enough scoring to stay competitive. The defense will give some points back, but the offense will keep the Rams within striking distance.
Pick: Rhode Island +15 (Play to +13)
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