South Dakota Coyotes vs Drake Bulldogs Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Week 2
Drake is 2-0 and allowing 58.0 points per game, but South Dakota scores 87.5 per game behind Vince Buzelis in a high total matchup.
The Matchup
Drake hosts South Dakota at the Knapp Center in Des Moines with a 2-0 record, scoring 88.0 points per game and allowing 58.0 this season. South Dakota is 1-3 from the Summit League but has scored 87.5 points per game, even while allowing 83.3, so the Coyotes will not slow this game down. Last season Drake finished 14-20 and South Dakota finished 16-16.
The numbers here blend this season with last season because both teams have played fewer than eight games, and for South Dakota that blend tempers a fast scoring start with a .500 season last year when the Coyotes scored 79.6 per game, while the Drake blend pulls its perfect start back toward a losing season last year. Vince Buzelis leads South Dakota at 17.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, with Josiah Dotzler adding 2.8 assists per game.
Drake is led by Jon Carroll at 20.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, with Owen Larson adding 4.5 assists per game. Buzelis, Carroll and Larson carry no injury designations.
Key Factors
Scoring volume is South Dakota’s path to covering. Buzelis is a high output forward who can score inside and out, and a team averaging 87.5 points per game does not need many stops to stay inside a large spread if it keeps trading baskets. Drake has been far better defensively this season, but two games is a small sample against a visitor that plays fast for forty minutes.
Drake can run away with this, and that is the counterpoint. Carroll at 20.5 points per game is the best player on the floor, Drake defends its home court well, and South Dakota allowing 83.3 points per game invites a blowout if the Coyotes turn it over. Drake needs only a normal defensive night and a strong Carroll performance to clear this number. South Dakota must avoid the three minute droughts that have hurt it in losses.
South Dakota scores too freely and plays too fast to be buried for a full game, even on the road against an unbeaten Drake team. Take South Dakota Coyotes +13.5 at -112.
Game Information
| Date | Friday (11/13) |
|---|---|
| Start Time | 6:30 PM CT |
| How to Watch | ESPN+ |
| Venue | Knapp Center, Des Moines |
| Spread | Drake Bulldogs -13.5 |
| Total | 160.5 |
| Moneyline | Drake Bulldogs -1,100 |
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