Friday, January 9, 2015

Eastern Washington @ Idaho on Saturday Will Be Fun

In case you aren't aware, what could be the most entertaining game of the Big Sky season will be going down on Saturday night in Moscow, as Eastern Washington will travel to take on Idaho. Both teams are 2-0, but it will be a fun game even more so because both teams have been great offensively, and both play at a fast, fun to watch pace.

Eastern Washington has scored 1.11 PPP against DI opponents this year, which is 22nd in the nation, and first in the Big Sky. Idaho has scored 1.07 PPP against DI opponents this year, which is 55th in the country and second in the Big Sky.

Idaho games average 69.8 possessions per game, the 27th fastest pace in the country. EWU is not far behind at 68.3 possessions per game, 59th in the nation.

In short, this game's over/under would probably have to be at around the 170 mark before you would think about taking the under. KenPom projects an 86-83 EWU win, which, as you might guess, is a lot of points.

One key to the game could be the health of Drew Brandon, who played only seven minutes last week and has been battling back spasms all year. Idaho has their own excellent PG in senior Mike Scott, so the Eagles really need Brandon's distribution and rebounding ability.

The other key will be how they should the ball from outside... both teams can fill it up from deep, with EWU especially relying on the long ball. The Vandals will need to guard Tyler Harvey closely basically as soon as he crosses midcourt. On the other side, Connor Hill has been on fire the last few weeks for Idaho.

The game is at 8:05 on Saturday, and should be a great one. Besides, what else is there to do on a Saturday night?

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