Middle Tennessee vs North Texas 1/7/23 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The North Texas Mean Green and the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders meet Saturday in college basketball action from Murphy Center. North Texas is fresh off a Thursday game versus Western Kentucky. In that one the Mean Green took a four-point victory. As for Middle Tennessee, they played UTSA in their Thursday game. The Blue Raiders ended up falling by three points. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

North Texas managed an 8-2 run through their first 10 games, losing to Saint Mary’s and UNC Wilmington along the way. The Mean Green went 3-1 in their next four outings with wins over UMass, UTSA and FIU. 

In Thursday’s matchup versus Western Kentucky, the Mean Green were ahead 32-24 going into the second half. North Texas was outscored 42-38 from there but held on for the 70-66 win. Tylor Perry led the team on 22 points with four rebounds. 

Over on the Middle Tennessee side, they were 7-3 after 10 games with losses to Winthrop, Missouri State and St. Bonaventure. A 2-2 run followed for the Raiders with wins over Murray State and Western Kentucky. 

Matched up against UTSA on Thursday, the Blue Raiders took a 34-28 deficit into the break. Middle Tennessee hit a 44-41 run from there but lost 75-72. Eli Lawrence was the team’s leading scorer on 20 points with six boards. 

PICK: I’ll probably stick with North Texas here. The Mean Green have done a pretty good job bouncing back from their listless 50-46 loss to Florida Atlantic, hitting a combined 142 points across their last two outings. North Texas has scored 70 or more points in three of the last four games, so if they can keep that offensive output going I think they’ll be fine here. Middle Tennessee has been a mixed bag lately but can score well given the right circumstances. I don’t think the Raiders will keep a cover pace for the whole game here, though.