Rice Owls (11-18) vs. Charlotte 49ers (17-11)
March 6, 2024 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: Charlotte 49ers -9; Over/Under: +135.5
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The Rice Owls and the Charlotte 49ers meet in college basketball action from the Halton Arena on Wednesday night. Who comes out on top in Wednesday’s AAC matchup? Let’s dive in and find out with our Rice vs. Charlotte Prediction.
Rice Team Preview
The Rice Owls come into this one looking to rebound from back-to-back losses after an 87-66 loss to Wichita State last time out. Travis Evee leads the Owls in scoring with 16.2 PPG along with 3.3 RPG and 2.1 APG while Mekhi Mason has 13.8 PPG with 4 RPG and 2.9 APG as well as the only other double-digit scorer for Rice so far this season. Max Fiedler has 9.3 PPG with 9.2 RPG and 5.1 APG to lead the Owls in rebounding and assists as well this season. As a team, Rice is averaging 72.6 PPG on 44.1% shooting from the field, 33.6% from three and 69.6% from the foul line this season. Rice will meet North Texas after this one.
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Charlotte Team Preview
The Charlotte 49ers come into this one looking to snap a three-game losing streak after a 76-61 loss to USF last time out. Lu’Cye Patterson leads the 49ers in scoring with 14.5 PPG along with 2.5 APG while Igor Milicic Jr. has 12.6 PPG with a team-high 8.3 RPG to lead the 49ers on the glass up to this point in the year. Dishon Jackson has 11.6 PPG with 5.9 RPG while Nik Graves has 10.1 PPG with 3 APG as well for the 49ers to lead Charlotte in the assist department and to round out the group of double-digit scorers for Charlotte this season. As a team, Charlotte is averaging 68.8 PPG on 45.7% shooting from the field, 32.1% from three and 74.6% from the foul line this season.
Rice vs. Charlotte Prediction
I’m on Charlotte here. Rice has just not been able to cut it in conference play this season and while Charlotte’s definitely been a surprise this season, maybe not as much as USF leading the AAC, they’re still a really solid team nonetheless and I just think at home, Charlotte takes care of business as they have so many times this season. Rice still has some big time defensive issues and I don’t think the Owls will be able to break down Charlotte here. Give me Charlotte.
