The Central Michigan Chippewas (1-1) and South Alabama Jaguars (3-0) will open the slate of college basketball action on Thursday at the Showdown in St. Pete. The Jaguars head into the contest with an unbeaten record and they will try to stay unbeaten in this neutral-site game in Florida. Here, I break down this Thursday morning matchup and give you my Central Michigan vs South Alabama prediction.
Pick: South Alabama -4.5
Confidence: 3/5
South Alabama enters with confidence off a blowout 99-50 win over Spring Hill. The Jaguars' performance was highlighted by guard Hantz Louis‑Jeune scoring 17 points in that game. The Jaguars also have wins over Toledo and Alcorn State to start this season. They will try to move to 4-0 overall and get their second win of the season over a MAC opponent.
Central Michigan suffered a brutal 85-54 loss at the hands of Bradley in their last game. The Chippewas opened their season with a win over App State. Central Michigan will try to get a second win over a Sun Belt opponent this season and to get back above the .500 mark with a win. For that to happen, someone needs to step up in a big way for the Chippewas, as they don't have a player averaging over 13 points per game thus far.
This is a very interesting game from a situational standpoint. Both teams are going to have to overcome an early start and how that can impact a player's body clock. They will also have to generate their own energy, as I'm not expecting many fans to show up to a neutral-site college basketball game between two small-conference teams this early in the day.
Score Projection: Central Michigan 67 – South Alabama 74
Win Probability: Central Michigan 34%, South Alabama 66%
I am expecting South Alabama to have the upper hand in this Thursday morning matchup from St. Pete. The Jaguars have been more consistent offensively than the Chippewas to start this campaign. I expect that to continue as South Alabama should get a morning victory to improve to 4-0 on the young college basketball season.
Jay Sanin is the GM and Head of Sports at ATS.io. He has been writing about sports gambling since 2013, handicapping tens of thousands of sporting events. He plays sides and totals aggressively across most sports and is more selective in player prop markets. He does his own modeling across most sports, and his family is jealous of how much time he spends on his precious spreadsheets.
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