Halftime Report

After a tough loss on the road their last time out, Evansville looks much better today on their home court. They have jumped out to a quick 33-32 lead against Western Kentucky.

If Evansville keeps playing like this, they'll bump their record up to 4-5 in no time. On the other hand, Western Kentucky will have to make due with a 4-4 record unless they turn things around (and fast).

Who's Playing

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers @ Evansville Aces

Current Records: Western Kentucky 4-3, Evansville 3-5

How To Watch

What to Know

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers will face off against the Evansville Aces at 2:00 p.m. ET on Saturday at Ford Center. The Hilltoppers are no doubt hoping to put an end to a five-game streak of away losses dating back to last season.

Western Kentucky's offense and defense might be a bit winded after their high-scoring matchup with Marshall on Saturday. Western Kentucky came out on top against Marshall by a score of 90-82.

Western Kentucky got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Julius Thedford out in front who went 6 for 8 en route to 19 points. Thedford is trending in the right direction considering he's improved his point production for three straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Babacar Faye, who went 5 for 6 en route to 14 points plus six rebounds.

Even though they won, Western Kentucky struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only three offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've posted since the start of last season.

Meanwhile, Evansville didn't have quite enough to beat Murray State on Tuesday and fell 63-61. The Aces have struggled against the Racers recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive lost matchup.

The losing side was boosted by Gabriel Pozzato, who scored 15 points along with six steals. Cam Haffner was another key player, earning 14 points along with five rebounds.

Western Kentucky is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a massive bump to their 4-3 record this season. As for Evansville, their loss dropped their record down to 3-5.

Saturday's game is shaping up to be a scrappy contest: Western Kentucky has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 39.6 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Evansville, though, as they've been averaging only 32.6. Given Western Kentucky's sizable advantage in that area, Evansville will need to find a way to close that gap.

As for their next game, Western Kentucky is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 5.5 points. This will be their first time playing as the favorites on the road this season.

Odds

Western Kentucky is a solid 5.5-point favorite against Evansville, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The line has drifted a bit towards the Hilltoppers, as the game opened with the Hilltoppers as a 4-point favorite.


The over/under is 152 points.

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