Jacksonville State Gamecocks vs. Auburn Tigers Picks, Predictions, Odds

Dave Schwab Sports Betting Expert

5 minute read

Early NCAA Tournament play this Friday in the Midwest Region gets underway at 12:40 p.m. (ET) with the ASUN’s Jacksonville State Gamecocks facing the SEC’s Auburn Tigers in Greenville, NC. The game will be broadcast nationally on truTV.

Score Prediction

Auburn 74, Jacksonville State 60

Best Bet

Under 138.5 (-110)

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MARCH MADNESS BETTING RESOURCES

JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS vs. AUBURN TIGERS PREDICTIONS

Jacksonville State may have gotten into the NCAA Tournament on a technicality but it was still a productive 21-10 straight-up while going 13-3 in conference play. The fact that this team is not an automatic No. 16 seed or forced to play a First Four game gives the Gamecocks some credibility. This team’s bigger concern as a heavy 15.5-point underdog could be the three-point loss to Jacksonville as a six-point favorite in the Atlantic Sun Tournament.

Auburn is still scratching its head over a stunning five-point loss to Texas A&M as a nine-point favorite in its only game in the recent SEC Tournament. The Tigers won the SEC regular season title at 15-3 SU and it went 27-5 overall. The road to redemption starts this Friday as heavy favorites to advance on. However, last Friday’s loss is still raises some question marks as to the team’s current playing form given the extended time off.

This game may stay closer than expected for the first 20 minutes. In the end, Auburn will prevail with relative ease but I am not thrilled with laying more than 15 points. The stronger play in this matchup is the UNDER on the 138.5-point total line.

JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS vs. AUBURN TIGERS BETTING ODDS

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JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS vs. AUBURN TIGERS BETTING RESOURCES

Date: Friday, March 18, 2022
Matchup: No. 15 vs. No. 2
Region: Midwest
Venue: Bon Secours Wellness Arena
Location: Greenville, South Carolina
TV-Time: truTV - 12:40 p.m. ET

JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

SU: 21-10
ATS: 17-12
O/U: 14-15

As a betting team, Jacksonville State was a solid 20-7-1 against the spread overall. The Gamecocks failed to cover in their last outing after going a perfect 5-0 both SU and ATS in their previous five games. Early in the season in nonconference play, they covered as healthy underdogs against Wichita State and Alabama.

In 14 games as an underdog this season, Jacksonville State was 8-6 ATS. The total stayed UNDER in 17 of 28 games overall and it has stayed UNDER in six of the team’s last nine matchups. The Gamecocks are averaging 73.9 points per game while holding opposing teams to an average of 66.8 points.

Guard Darian Adams is the team’s leading scorer with 15.6 PPG. Guard Demaree King (10.7 points) is the Gamecocks’ top shooter hitting 48.3% of his shots from the field and 46.2% of his shots from three-point range.

Jacksonville State, as a team, is shooting 47.2% from the field and 38.8% from outside the three-point line. Foul shooting has been shaky at times with a completion percentage of 68.1. The team is pulling down 36.9 rebounds a game with an average of 9.7 on offense.

AUBURN TIGERS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

SU: 27-5
ATS: 19-12-1
O/U: 18-14

Auburn has proven itself to be the class of the SEC this season in what has been one of the stronger efforts for a major conference best known for football. Through 32 games, the Tigers also have a winning record against the betting number at 19-12-1. That record took a beating down the stretch at 1-5-1 ATS over the last seven games.

The total stayed UNDER 141 points in last Friday’s 67-62 loss to the Aggies. It also stayed UNDER 142 in a recent loss to Tennessee by that identical score. Auburn has been a solid scoring team all season long with a 78.7-point average. However, it has failed to cross that mark in four of its last six games.

Forward Jabari Smith remains the biggest scoring threat with an average of 17.1 PPG. He is one of four players putting up at least 11 points a game. Guard Wendell Green Jr. leads the team in three point attempts with 178 and he has connected on 32% of those shots.

Auburn is shooting 44% from the field and 32% from three-point range to highlight more than a few cold spells throughout the season. The Tigers have been able to shoot 73.3% from the free throw line. They are pulling down 39.9 rebounds a game as one of the better teams in the nation under the boards. Auburn’s points-allowed average of defense is 67.

**Auburn has won 17 of its last 18 games when facing a non-AP-ranked school on a neutral court. (AP)**

INSIDE THE STATS - JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS

Record: 21-10
PS/G: 73.9 (99th)
PA/G: 66.8 (106th)

INSIDE THE STATS - AUBURN TIGERS

Record: 27-5
PS/G: 78.7 (23rd)
PA/G: 67 (114th)

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH

JVST: Darian Adams - G (15.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg)
JVST: Demaree King - G (10.7 ppg)
AUB: Jabari Smith - F (17.1 ppg, 7 rpg)
AUB: Wendell Green - G (12.1 ppg, 5 apg)

JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS vs. AUBURN TIGERS BETTING CONCLUSION

The total has stayed UNDER in Jacksonville State’s last five games against a team from the SEC. While that may be more of a coincidence than a legitimate betting trend, I see that streak getting extended to six games on Friday afternoon in Greenville.

MARCH MADNESS PICK RESOURCES

JACKSONVILLE STATE GAMECOCKS vs. AUBURN TIGERS BETTING TRENDS

Jacksonville State has covered the spread in five of its last six games.
Jacksonville State has gone UNDER the point total in six of its last nine games.
Jacksonville State has covered the spread in five of its last six games when playing as the underdog.
Auburn has won seven of its last 10 NCAA Tournament games.

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Dave Schwab

Dave Schwab has been covering the sports betting industry for the past 12 years as the main focus of his specialty marketing company for online content. This endeavor followed a previous career in the field of sales and marketing in the wholesaling sector.Most of his weekly pieces focus on the rapidly expanding legal US sports betting industry. However, he still does extensive work covering betting angles that can provide a competitive edge to avid players. Dave believes that it is always a challenge to take past results and current form to try and correctly determine a future result. Sports brings out the unpredictability in what should be a fairly predictable outcome based on the stats, facts and recent trends in a particular matchup. More from Dave Schwab