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Bellarmine vs. North Florida prediction and odds for Monday, February 27

By Josh Yourish

Feb 11, 2023; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; A general view of the official game ball going into the basket during the first half in the game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the South Florida Bulls at Fifth Third Arena. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2023; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; A general view of the official game ball going into the basket during the first half in the game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the South Florida Bulls at Fifth Third Arena. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports /
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On Friday, just three days ago, the North Florida Ospreys beat the Bellarmine Knights, 79-67 at home. Now, they will face off in the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament as the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds.

Both finished the regular season 9-9 in conference play. The winner of this matchup will face No. 2 seed Liberty who is the prohibitive favorite to win the ASUN tournament.

The Knights are looking for revenge from Friday and to repeat as conference tournament champions.

They won the ASUN tournament just last season, but it was their first as a Division I program, so they weren’t allowed to go dancing. If they win the tournament again this year, they still will not be allowed to participate in the NCAA Tournament.

They still want to spoil the party for the rest of the conference, so let’s take a look at the odds:

Bellarmine vs. North Florida odds, spread and total

Bellarmine vs. North Florida prediction and pick

Bellarmine is one of the slowest paced teams in the country, it is 360 out of 363 in possessions per game, so it need to be efficient on offense.

Yet, the Knights are only 224th in offensive efficiency, which means they’ve ended up 315th in points per game scoring just 66.3.

Though they have a real chance to score against UNF who is 350th in opponent points per game and let their opponents shoot 46.2% from the field and 35.5% from 3.

Bellarmine also looks initially like a strong defensive team, it is 86th in scoring defense, allowing just 66.6 points a game, but that has much more to do with its pace than its actual ability on that end.

The Knights are 323rd in defensive efficiency. North Florida is 352nd, so I don’t expect anyone to be getting stops in this game.

I’ll take the over despite the Knights preference to walk the ball up the floor because UNF makes up for it with its 3-point shooting, 36.3% and much faster pace.

Pick: Over 140 (-110)

Follow all Josh Yourish’s bets HERE

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change