A pair of schools struggling a bit will collide in the nation's capital with the Richmond Spiders (12-12, 10-13-1 ATS, 5-6 A-10) in town to take on the George Washington Colonials (11-12, 10-12-0 ATS, 5-5 A-10). Richmond beat George Washington 73-63 earlier in the season, although the game was tighter than the score would indicate. The Spiders also covered as 8.5-point favorites that night. Overall, the Spiders have won six straight over the Colonials and 13 of the last 14. Tipoff for this game is 7:00 p.m. EST in George Washington's Charles E. Smith Center.
Spiders Looking to Strike Twice
Richmond ended a four-game losing streak when they beat Fordham 68-58 on Sunday. Their offense was on fire, hitting 50.0% of their threes and shooting 46.5% from the floor. They also got to the free-throw line a whopping 28 times. Forward Matt Grace led the team in scoring and rebounding, with a career-high 21 points and eight boards.
Matt Grace from 3️⃣ and it's LOUD in the Robins Center.
— Richmond Basketball (@SpiderMBB) February 5, 2023
Spiders down 1 with 7:13 to play. Grace has a game-high 15 points. #OneRichmond pic.twitter.com/Kc94j3LvIw
The Spiders play at a slow tempo, ranking 291 in adjusted tempo, leading to only 68.3 points per game. Their shooting numbers are middle of the pack in the A-10, shooting 43.4% from the floor and 34.0% on threes. Those numbers rank ninth and seventh in the conference, respectively.
Their defense stouter. Richmond is holding opposing teams to 66.5 points per game on 41.9% shooting. Those both rank fourth in the A-10 this season. Opponents hit 33.2% of their threes against the Spiders.
KenPom puts Richmond at 138 in the nation this year. Bracketology has them out of the picture, so their best bet for an NCAA tournament berth is by winning the conference tournament.
Colonials Looking to Break Free From Slump
George Washington got blown out at home by Duquesne on Saturday, trailing the entire way before ultimately falling 93-67. They turned the ball over 18 times and only shot 42.1% from the field. They allowed Duquesne to hit 52.3% of their shots. Maximus Edwards was the teams leading scorer with 15 points.
The Colonials play at a high tempo, ranking 89th in adjusted tempo. However, KenPom has them just 217th in the nation this season. Like Richmond, they aren't in play for an-large bid for the NCAA tournament at this point.
Their tempo leads to 75.2 points per game, second in the A-10, but they also shoot well. As a team, the Colonials shoot 46.5% which is third in the conference and 66th in the country. They aren't as successful from deep, only knocking down 32.3% of their three-pointers.
Their high tempo also leads to allowing the most points per game in the A-10, 75.0 per game. Opponents also shoot well against them, hitting 35.3% of threes and 45.2% of shots overall. Those rank 14th and last in the A-10, respectively. Both percentages also rank greater than 280th in the nation this season.
Best Bets for this Game
Full-Game Side Bet
Insiders Status:
George Washington's past few games have been pretty ugly. They were all double-digit losses, and the Colonials did not exceed 70 points in any of them. With their defense and tempo that is a recipe for disaster. Richmond's defense is great at forcing misses, and that was evident in the first matchup which Richmond won by 10 points. If the Colonials aren't hitting shots consistently, the holes in their conference-worst defense become unavoidable. Richmond's defense will get plenty of stops again, and their offense will eventually get hot and pull away. Richmond covers against George Washington again.
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Full-Game Total Pick
Insiders Status:
Like the first game, I expect Richmond to dictate the flow and the under to hit. They ranked 284th in Adjusted Tempo according to KenPom. The first meeting ended with 136 total points because it was a slower game where Richmond's defense stifled George Washington. Neither team is great from three, so there's little reason to expect a barrage in this game. Richmond may get a lot of easy buckets on a weak George Washington defense, but if they're coming in sets then, again, Richmond will be keeping the game slow. The under is the best bet here.