Maine Black Bears vs NJIT Highlanders Betting Pick & Prediction 1/20/24

Betting on today’s Black Bears and Highlanders game? Catch the action at NJIT Wellness and Events Center in Newark, NJ, as the Highlanders hosts this showdown at 2:00 ET on ESPN+. The Black Bears are the favored team in this America East conference contest against the Highlanders. The game’s over/under currently sits at 134.5 points.

MAINE BLACK BEARS VS NJIT HIGHLANDERS BETTING PICK

The Pick: NJIT Highlanders +5

This game will be played at NJIT Wellness and Events Center at 2:00 ET on Saturday, January 20th.

WHY BET THE NJIT HIGHLANDERS:

• We have this one finishing with a projected score of 74-68 in favor of the Highlanders.
• Not only will NJIT pick up the win, but look for them to cover at +5.
• The over/under is currently sitting at 134.5 points, and we like the over with a projected 142 points.

Can The Black Bears Secure a Road Victory?

After starting the season 8-4, Maine has lost six straight games to fall to 8-10 on the year. They are 0-3 in America East games and 5-8 on the road. This season, the Black Bears have been favored in 11 of their 18 games, going 6-5 in those matchups.

Most recently, Maine lost to UMBC, 70-65. Over their last ten road games, the Black Bears are 3-7, and they have lost five straight games away from home.

As the favorite, Maine has gone 6-5 vs. the spread this season and 1-2 in their last three games. On the road, their ATS mark is 6-7 in 2019-20 and just 4-6 in their last 10 road contests. Overall, the Black Bears have an ATS record of 8-9 this year.

This season, the over/under record for Maine games is 7-10 and the average scoring total in their games is 133.4 points. Today’s over/under line of 134.5 is lower than the average OU line in their games this season (137.6). In their last three games, the over/under record is 1-2 and the average scoring total in those games is 136 points.

Maine offense recently wrapped up a game with a total of 65 points against UMBC. In that game, they made 9/26 three-point attempts and achieved a field goal percentage of 32.4%. Kellen Tynes led the scoring for the Black Bears, contributing 13 points. Additionally, Kristians Feierbergs chipped in with 13 points.

So far this season, the Maine defense has been performing well, ranking 72nd in the country at 67.1 points allowed per contest. Against UMBC, the Black Bears’ defense gave up 70 points and did a good job not fouling. For the game, UMBC only made 10 free-throws.

Does NJIT Have a Shot at a Home Win?

The NJIT Highlanders are coming off a 70-62 loss to New Hampshire and have lost four straight games. They have an overall record of 4-12 and are 0-4 in America East action. At home, they are 2-4 this season and have gone 4-6 in their last 10 games.

So far, NJIT has been the underdog in 14 of their 16 games, and they are 2-12 in those contests. On the year, they have been outscored by an average of 3.2 points per game at home.

As the underdog this season, NJIT has gone 5-9 vs. the spread. At home, their ATS record is 2-4 and their mark vs. the spread in their last three home games is 1-2. Overall, their ATS record is 6-9.

So far this season, the over/under record for NJIT games is 6-9. The average scoring total in their games is 142.9, which is very close to the average over/under line of 143.1. This year, 12 of their games have had higher over/under lines than today’s line of 134.5. Over their last three games, the average scoring total is 131 points and their over/under record during that span is 0-3.

In their latest game, NJIT offense put up 62 points against New Hampshire. They recorded an overall field goal percentage of 33.9% and made 7 threes. Offensively, the Highlanders have a season long field goal percentage of 40%, which is 390th in the nation. In terms of three-pointers, they are 344th in percentage and 163rd in three-pointers made.

At present, the Highlanders’ defense is nationally ranked 236th, allowing 75.2 points per game. In their previous game vs. New Hampshire, the Wildcats finished with a field goal percentage of 33% and a total of 70 points vs. NJIT.