Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama Prediction, Odds and Key Players for Sun Belt Tournament Second Round

Georgia Southern and South Alabama tip off the Sun Belt Tournament action on Thursday afternoon.

The Jaguars are a year removed from the conference championship game, can the team make another run, starting with a win on Thursday against a frisky Georgia Southern team that has plenty of upside?

Here's our full betting preview for the Sun Belt second round matchup.

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Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama Odds, Spread and Total

South Alabama vs. Georgia Southern Betting Trends

• Georgia Southern is 14-17 against the spread (ATS) this season
• Georgia Southern has gone OVER in eight of the last 10 games
• South Alabama has gone UNDER in seven of the last 10 games

Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama How to Watch

• Date: Thursday, March 6th
• Game Time: 12:30 PM EST
• Venue: Pensacola Bay Center
• How to Watch (TV): ESPN+
• Georgia Southern Record: 8-23
• South Alabama Record: 16-15

Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama Key Players to Watch

Georgia Southern

Tyren Moore: Averaging 16 points per game, Moore is the straw that stirs the drink for the analytically sound Georgia Southern offense that focuses on threes and layups. Moore was limited to only 10 minutes in the lone meeting against South Alabama earlier this season, can he have a big outing on Thursday afternoon?

South Alabama

Tyrell Jones: The senior guard Jones is averaging a career-high 12 points per game and will look to break down the league-worst Georgia Southern defense that has been a disaster all season. It's worth noting that Jones struggled in the 13-point home win against Georgia Southern, turning it over four times and only scoring eight points with no assists.

Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama Prediction and Pick

While Moore hardly played in the first meeting, this should be a good spot for South Alabama to jump-start another Sun Belt Tournament run against an Eagles team that has struggled against zone defenses all year. The team is fifth in the country in catch-and-shoot threes, per ShotQuality, but South Alabama is 53rd in the country in points per possession allowed on that type of shot and the Jaguars do a strong job of containing the three-point line.

Further, USA is the second-best three-point shooting team in the conference and also the best free-throw shooting in the league. This is problematic for Georgia Southern, which allows open threes at a top-30 rate and allows free throws at the highest rate in conference play.

I think South Alabama can take care of business in the second round and advance given the matchup edges against Georgia Southern.

South Alabama -2.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.