NIT Championship: UAB vs. North Texas Picks, Predictions, Odds

This has been the greatest season in Conference USA basketball history by a mile. Florida Atlantic is in the NCAA Final Four, Charlotte won the CBI Tournament in its first appearance, and we have an all-CUSA NIT Championship Game with UAB and North Texas playing for the title.

This is the first appearance in the NIT Championship Game for both the Blazers and the Mean Green, and both teams would love to win this tournament in order to build for next season. Although North Texas won two of the three previous meetings between these teams this year, it's UAB that is the slight favorite by the college basketball betting odds after winning in the CUSA Tournament semifinals.

The NIT Championship Game will be held at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Thursday, March 30, 2023. Tip off is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. ET on ESPN2 between the UAB Blazers and the North Texas Mean Green.

The Blazers are 5-2 ATS in their last seven games. (Getty)

UAB Blazers vs. North Texas Mean Green Betting Prediction

There is a lot of familiarity between these two teams as this is the fourth meeting between UAB and North Texas this season. The Blazers were underdogs in their last showdown, but UAB jumped out to a 22-2 lead in the first 10 minutes and never looked back in a seven-point win. If you look back at UAB's two previous losses to North Texas, one came in double overtime on the road, and the Blazers didn't have leading scorer Jordan 'Jelly' Walker in the other one, so the Blazers are the play on Thursday night.

Best Bet: UAB -2 (-110)
Score Prediction: UAB 72, North Texas 63

UAB Blazers vs. North Texas Mean Green Betting Odds

UAB Blazers vs. North Texas Mean Green Betting Resources

Date: Thursday, March 30th, 2023
TV-Time: ESPN2, 9:40 p.m. ET
Venue: Orleans Arena
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Matchup
Expert Picks

UAB Blazers vs. North Texas Mean Green Betting Stats

UAB Blazers
SU: 29-9
ATS: 18-19
O/U: 23-14
PPG: 81.4
OPPG: 70.9

North Texas Mean Green
SU: 30-7
ATS: 21-14
O/U: 17-17-1
PPG: 64.4
OPPG: 55.7

Straight Up (SU), Against the Spread (ATS), Over-Under (O/U)
Points Per Game (PPG), Opponents Points Per Game (OPPG)

Updated on 03/19/2024
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UAB Blazers Betting Analysis

Jordan Walker has been one of the nation's top scorers this season. Walker is averaging 22.3 PPG, and that ranks fifth in the nation. He hasn't performed great so far in the NIT though, as Walker is making just 26.5% of his field goal attempts in four games. His last great game was against North Texas three weeks ago, as Walker finished with a game-high 32 points and hit 40% of his threes. That is the Walker that UAB needs in order to claim its first NIT Championship.

UAB is one of the best teams in the country when it comes to following up on missed shots and grabbing offensive rebounds. The Blazers rank 10th nationally in offensive rebounding percentage with Trey Jemison, K.J. Buffen, Ty Brewer, and Javian Davis all helping out in this regard. All of UAB's big men play close to the basket, and that has led to problems with smaller teams like North Texas, especially since the Mean Green don't have their best frontcourt player available.

The Blazers have a solid defense. Opponents are hitting just 31.7% of their threes against this team, and they are making just 47% of their two-point attempts too. Jemison is a very good shot blocker that can alter the course of shots, and Eric Gaines is one of the best guards at forcing turnovers.

North Texas is 12-3 ATS in their last 15 games. (Getty)

North Texas Mean Green Betting Analysis

The absence of Abou Ousmane cannot be understated for North Texas. Ousmane has been the best big man for the Mean Green all season, and he averaged 11.1 PPG and 6.0 RPG before leaving the program due to a personal matter a few weeks ago. Without Ousmane in the lineup, North Texas has had to play Moulaye Sissoko a lot more than normal, and he has struggled with his defense. Sissoko did come up huge in the win over Oklahoma State, but he wasn't great in the other three NIT games.

North Texas was incredibly fortunate to get to the NIT Championship Game. The Mean Green were in the process of getting blown out by the Wisconsin Badgers on Tuesday night when Wisconsin went ice cold from the floor. After scoring 41 points in the first half, the Badgers had just 13 points in the second half and scored just three points in the final 13 minutes of play. It was one of the biggest collapses we've seen all season.

Conference USA Player of the Year Tylor Perry is averaging 20.8 PPG in the NIT for North Texas. Perry led the team with 17.2 PPG in the regular season, and he is hitting 41.6% of his threes on the season. Aaron Scott has been a decent three-point shooter as long as he's not in foul trouble, while Kai Huntsberry has been hit or miss as the second leading scorer on the team.