Wofford Terriers vs Queens University Royals Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Week 2

Queens has allowed 102.3 points a game through four shootouts, and Wofford brings the glass edge and a two-game winning streak into the highest total on this part of the slate.

The Matchup

Wofford visits Queens on Saturday at 1:00 PM CT at Curry Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, on ESPN+, with Queens a 7.5-point favorite, a total of 172.5, and no moneyline posted. The total is the highest on this part of the slate, and Queens plays its first home game of the season.

Queens is 2-2 out of the Atlantic Sun Conference, scoring 87.3 points a game and allowing 102.3 this season, a defensive number that swallows everything else about the Royals' start. Nasir Mann leads Queens at 18.0 points a game, Jordan Watford leads the Royals at 5.5 assists a game, and Isaiah Henry leads them at 5.8 rebounds a game, and Mann, Watford, and Henry carry no injury designations into this game. Queens shoots 47 percent as a team and averages 16.8 assists and 9.0 steals a game, so the Royals press the action at both ends and live with the chaos that follows.

Wofford is 2-2 out of the Southern Conference, scoring 80.0 points a game and allowing 78.3 this season, and the Terriers arrive on a two-game winning streak. Jyi Dawkins leads Wofford at 13.8 points a game, Jacob Daniels leads the Terriers at 3.2 assists a game, and Evan Ramsey leads them at 6.5 rebounds a game, and Dawkins, Daniels, and Ramsey carry no injury designations into this game.

Last season explains Queens better than its first four games do: the Royals went 21-14 scoring 84.5 a game and allowing 83.5, a fast team that defended at a passable level, while Wofford went 19-13 scoring 78.8 and allowing 77.1, nearly identical to its current lines. Queens allowing 102.3 a night is the outlier in this game, and outliers this large usually shrink, though rarely all at once.

Key Factors

The first factor is the glass. Wofford averages 41.8 rebounds a game to Queens at 32.5, with Ramsey at 6.5 a game leading a group that treats the offensive boards as a second offense. In a game priced for this many possessions, extra chances are how an underdog keeps answering a hot home team, and Queens' small lineups have no answer for a visitor that rebounds in waves.

The second factor is Queens' pressure against Wofford's ball sharing. The Royals force the action with 9.0 steals a game, and Wofford turns the ball over 14.3 times a game, so the Terriers' 16.5 assists a game have to show up under real heat. If Wofford moves the ball the way its assist numbers say it can, the pressure becomes a gift: broken presses turn into open looks against a defense already allowing the most points on the slate.

The honest counterpoint is that Queens is home for the first time, scores 87.3 a game, and has the best player in the game in Mann. Wofford has not won on the road yet this season, and if the Royals' pressure turns the Terriers over early, Curry Arena can turn a fast game into a runaway before Wofford's rebounding edge ever gets a chance to matter. A home favorite in a track meet only needs one long run.

Every pick is published with its line before the game. Odds via consensus sportsbooks at time of writing and move constantly. Must be 21+. If gambling is a problem, call or text 1-800-GAMBLER.