The Sacred Heart Pioneers host the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights in Northeast Conference action on Thursday evening at the William H. Pitt Center. Tipoff is at 6 p.m. ET. The Pioneers are favored by four points, with the total at 157.5 in the latest Sacred Heart vs. Fairleigh Dickinson odds. It's a critical NEC tilt with both teams at 6-4 in conference play and tied for second in the league behind Robert Morris. With both teams hungry for the win, you'll definitely want to see the Sacred Heart vs. Fairleigh Dickinson picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine before making your own predictions.
This model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, has raked in the winnings for those following its picks. Over the past two years, the SportsLine Projection Model has returned over $5,200 to $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks. It also entered Week 14 of the 2018-19 college basketball season on a blistering 90-58 run on top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now, the model has simulated Sacred Heart vs. Fairleigh 10,000 times. We can tell you it is leaning toward the under, but it also says one side of the spread has all the value, making it a must-back. You can only see that pick at SportsLine.
The model knows that Sacred Heart's offense will be relying heavily on its ability to get to the free-throw line. The Pioneers love to attack opponents and get them in foul trouble. In fact, the Pioneers earn a free throw attempt once every two field goal attempts in conference play, the highest rate in the NEC. Even more importantly, when they get to the free-throw line, they make it count. Sacred Heart is shooting an astonishing 79 percent from the charity stripe during NEC play, by far the best mark in the league.
Pioneers leading scorer Sean Hoehn gets to the line nearly six times per game on average this season and is hitting 82.2 percent when he gets there.
But just because Sacred Heart makes the most of its opportunities doesn't mean it can cover the spread against Fairleigh Dickinson on Thursday.
The Knights have the most efficient offense in the conference during league play. They average 110.1 points per 100 possessions and are shooting 39 percent from beyond the arc during NEC action. Darnell Edge, Jahlil Jenkins and Xzavier Malone give Fairleigh Dickinson a guard-dominated roster, while forward Kaleb Bishop's ability to stretch the floor makes it incredibly difficult to defend Fairleigh Dickinson.
So who wins Sacred Heart vs. Fairleigh Dickinson? And which side of the spread has all the value? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the Sacred Heart vs. Fairleigh Dickinson spread you need to jump on, all from the model that has returned more than $5,000 to $100 players the last two years, and find out.
