by Chuck Sommers
Sunday, Jan 02, 2022Time: 2 p.m. ET
Venue: McLeod Center, Cedar Falls, IA
Where to watch: ESPN+
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: NL
BetMGM: Northern Iowa -10.5
Caesars: NL
Season record
Evansville: 4-8 (0-1 Missouri Valley)
Northern Iowa: 4-7 (0-1 Missouri Valley)
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Evansville - Northern Iowa preview and analysis
Recent form
Evansville: lost 75-73 at Southeast Missouri on Dec. 8
Northern Iowa: lost 71-69 at Wyoming on Dec. 23
It's a battle of struggling teams from the Missouri Valley going at it on Sunday when the Evansville Purple Aces are getting double-digit points against the Northern Iowa Panthers.
Both teams come in with just four wins to this point and having to deal with their own pauses in the season. This will be the first game since Dec. 8 for Evansville, while NIU is coming up on 10 days since their last game.
Whether or not you can say the rest plays a factor might be irrelevant. Northern Iowa comes in at 10.5-point favorites at some books with many believing the bump in the road to NIU's tough start easily outweighs anything Evansville has going right now.
Both teams are coming off losses, Evansville by 2 to Southeast Missouri and NIU by 2 against the Wyoming Cowboys.
Leading scorer Nate Niese led the way with 19 points on an efficient 6 of 8 evening, while Austin Phyfe had 18 points in 28 minutes off the bench.
Evansville was involved in a back-and-forth affair with Southeast Missouri and had the chance to win. After Phillip Russell missed the one-and-one, Shamar Givance grabbed the rebound and had a chance to end it with a winning 3, but he missed it.
Givance led with 15 points, seven assists and six rebounds, while Noah Frederking and Jaqaun Newton had 15 points each.
Evansville was involved in a back-and-forth affair with Southeast Missouri and had the chance to win. After Phillip Russell missed the one-and-one, Shamar Givance grabbed the rebound and had a chance to end it with a winning 3, but he missed it.
Givance led with 15 points, seven assists and six rebounds, while Noah Frederking and Jaqaun Newton had 15 points each.
Prediction
Seeing how even these teams are on the record book, it almost seems unfair to not take Evansville with the points. All it takes is a little defense and maybe some timely stops, but I think UNI gets it outright. Northern Iowa by 8
Betting trends
Evansville is 1-5 ATS as an underdog this season.
Northern Iowa is 0-6 ATS as a favorite this season.
Projected starting lineup
Evansville:
PG: Shamar Givance
SG: Jawaun Newton
SF: Noah Frederking
PF: Antoine Smith Jr.
C: Evan Kuhlman
Northern Iowa:
PG: A.J. Green
SG: Nate Heise
SF: Tywhon Pickford
PF: Trae Berhow
C: Cole Henry
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
