New Mexico vs. Utah State Prediction, Odds and Key Players for Saturday, March 9
Utah State has clinched a share of the Mountain West title and can lock up sole possession of the regular season championship with a win against New Mexico State. If the Aggies lose, things may get weird. A loss would even them up with Boise State at 13-5 and both Nevada and UNLV can also bring their records to 13-5 with wins today.
New Mexico has a chance to play spoiler tonight and they already have a win against Utah State, beating them by a score of 99-86 earlier this season.
Can Utah State avenge it's loss to New Mexico and lock up the Mountain West today? Let's find out what the oddsmakers think.
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New Mexico vs. Utah State odds, spread, and total
New Mexico vs. Utah State betting trends
- New Mexico is 1-4 ATS in its last five games
- The OVER is 11-4 in New Mexico's last 15 games
- Utah State is 5-2 ATS in its last seven games vs. New Mexico
- The OVER is 6-1 in New Mexico's last seven road games
- The UNDER is 5-0 in Utah State;s last five home games
- Utah State is 6-0 ATS in its last six home games vs. New Mexico
New Mexico vs. Utah State how to watch
- Date: Saturday, March 9
- Game time: 8:30 p.m. EST
- Venue: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum
- How to watch (TV): CBSSN
- New Mexico record: 22-8 (10-7 in Mountain West)
- Utah State record: 25-5 (13-4 in Mountain West)
New Mexico vs. Utah State key players to watch
New Mexico
Nelly Junior Joseph: The interior of Utah State's defense is its weakness which sets up New Mexico's center, Nelly Junior Joseph, to have a big game. He certainly did in the previous meeting between these two teams, putting up 26 points on 11-of-12 from the field along with eight rebounds and five blocks. If he has another game like that, Utah State is in trouble.
Utah State
Great Osobor: Utah State's forward is leading the team with 17.5 points and 8.9 rebounds, but I'm more interested in how he plays defensively. The Aggies struggle to stop two-point shots which is exactly where the Lobos thrive. Osobor needs to step up in a big way in this game.
New Mexico vs. Utah State prediction and pick
I broke down why I'm backing New Mexico in today's edition of the "Daily Dunk":
Utah State is a strange team when it comes to its defense. They have the second-best perimeter defense in the country, keeping teams to shooting just 28.3% from beyond the arc, yet the Aggies are 302nd in opponent two-point field goal percentage, allowing teams to shoot 53.1% from down low.
If you put that into practice, it should mean that Utah State will thrive against three-point shooting teams and struggle against teams who attack the interior of their opponent's defense. That could be a big reason why the Aggies have already lost to Nevada and New Mexico this season. In the first meeting, the Lobos shot 69.38% from the interior en route to a 99-86 win.
New Mexico is a stylistic nightmare for Utah State so while you may think betting on the No. 22-ranked Aggies as small home favorites is an obvious bet, think again. I'll take the points with the Lobos.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
You can check out all of Iain's bets here!