Oskeim Sports previews Tuesday’s college basketball game between Iona and Quinnipiac. Oskeim recommends taking the available points with the Bobcats as one of his free sports picks for February 19.
My math model favors Quinnipiac by 3.56 points in this game so the value rests squarely with the Bobcats. However, the situation could not be worse for Quinnipiac, who is playing its third game in five days and enters off a triple-overtime affair against Siena on Monday.
The Bobcats are tied with Canisius in first place at 9-5, while Rider and Monmouth both attempt to keep pace at 9-6. Quinnipiac has won six of its last eight games dating back to January 25 and is 19-7-2 ATS versus .499 or worse opposition.
Iona arrives with a struggling defense that is allowing 77.8 points per game to teams that would combine to average just 70.0 points per game against a mediocre stop unit.
Even more alarming is the fact that the Gaels are 3-12 SU and 2-12 ATS on the road this season where they are giving up 82.3 points per game. Quinnipiac’s offense rates 2.0 points per game better than average and should have success penetrating a woefully inadequate Iona defense.
Quinnipiac is averaging 10.6 three-point field goals per game, which ranks No. 10 nationally and lead the MAAC. The Bobcats have converted on ten or more 3-pointers in 18 of 25 games this season.
The Bobcats’ offense is led by graduate student Cameron Young, who was the team’s leading scorer in 2017-18 and was granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA in May of 2018.
Young is the MAAC’s leading scorer this season, averaging 22.8 points per game, together with 5.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists. The Los Angeles-native has recorded ten or more points in 23 of 25 games this season, and 20 or more points in 12 of the last 13 contests. Young also ranks No. 13 nationally in scoring.
The Bobcats’ backcourt has found a surprise contributor in freshman Tyrese Williams, who has started every game this season and is averaging 9.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in his first collegiate season.
Quinnipiac’s frontcourt is anchored by Rich Kelly, who missed the early stages of the 2018-19 campaign before returning on December 1 against Stony Brook. Since that date, Kelly has recorded 12.9 points, a team-best 4.6 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game.
Kelly is joined low by sophomore Jacob Rigoni, who averaged 9.8 points per game last season, including 11.5 points per contest in MAAC play. Rigoni has not skipped a beat between seasons as he is averaging 10.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in 2018-19.
From a technical standpoint, Iona is a money-burning 7-16 ATS overall this season, 12-23 ATS following a conference win and 5-15 ATS off a double-digit win over a conference foe. With the Gaels standing at 0-3-1 ATS in the last four meetings in this series, take Quinnipiac plus the 1 1/2 points as one of Oskeim Sports’ free sports picks for Tuesday.
Oskeim Sports’ Free Sports Picks for Tuesday, February 19:
- Quinnipiac (+1.5) (-110) over Iona
- Miami Ohio (pk) (-110) over Ball State
Be sure to visit Oskeim’s Blog daily for more free sports picks!