Free Sports Pick: East Carolina Looking to Avenge Earlier loss the Huskies

Feb 18, 2018

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Oskeim Sports breaks down the college basketball game between Connecticut and East Carolina on Sunday, February 18.  Oskeim’s free sports pick is on the East Carolina Panthers plus the points.  Be sure to check back later for another free sports pick on the college hardwood!

Connecticut is a money-burning 16-35-1 ATS in its last 52 games following a loss, 1-5 ATS in its last six conference affairs and 0-6 ATS in its last six games versus .499 or worse opposition.

The Huskies are 2-10 SU and 4-8 ATS on the road this season where they are allowing 78.8 points per game on 38.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Connecticut’s offense is equally inept away from home where it’s averaging just 64.7 points per game on 40.2% shooting from the field.

Meanwhile, East Carolina is quietly playing solid basketball, covering the point spread in eight of its last 11 games overall. The Pirates are coming off a confidence-boosting 82-80 upset win over Tulane as 13-point road underdogs and also took down Memphis 88-85 earlier this month as 7.5-point home underdogs.

Let’s also note that East Carolina is 5-1 ATS in the last six meetings in this series, including a perfect 4-0 ATS over the last three seasons.

The Pirates have received increased production from freshman Shawn Williams, who scored 29 points on 9-of-10 shooting against the Green Wave. Williams has scored double-digits in a career-long eight consecutive games, averaging 19.4 points per game and shooting nearly 48 percent from three-point territory!

Senior B.J. Tyson and redshirt junior Isaac Fleming have been the most consistent producers at the offense end of the floor for East Carolina.

Tyson is second on the team with 13.7 points per game in conference play, while Fleming has scored in double figures in six straight games, averaging 14.7 points per game on 51.4 percent shooting from the field and 40.0 percent from beyond the arc.

Fleming ranks second in the American Athletic Conference with 4.8 assists per game and has garnered 116 assists this season.

The Pirates are looking to avenge a 70-65 loss at Connecticut in January (16.5-point underdogs!) and catch the Huskies off a deflating 73-71 home loss to Tulsa on Thursday. Connecticut is just 4-12 ATS off a conference loss, 14-30 ATS off a loss by three points or less and 6-21 ATS following one or more consecutive defeats over the last two seasons.

The Huskies’ pedestrian defense is extremely relevant in this game in that East Carolina is 9-1 ATS versus poor pressure defensive teams (i.e forcing 14 or fewer turnovers per game) over the last two seasons.

East Carolina also applies to a very good 1389-84 ATS system that invests on certain teams looking to avenge a road loss, provided our ‘play on’ team is coming off an upset road win as an underdog of at least twelve points. Grab the generous points with the Pirates as Oskeim Sports’ Free Sports Pick for Sunday, February 18.

Oskeim Sports’ Free Sports Pick for Sunday, February 18:

  • East Carolina (+6.5) over Connecticut