LSU Tigers at Arkansas Razorbacks Betting Preview
Wednesday night will feature an SEC showdown as the LSU Tigers (20-9, 8-8 in SEC) take on the No. 14 Arkansas Razorbacks (23-6, 12-4 in SEC). The Razorbacks will host this one at Bud Walton Arena, with tipoff scheduled for 9:00 pm ET.
This is the second time this season these two have matched up. Back on January 15, Arkansas was able to pick up a road victory with a 65-58 win over LSU.
Recently, LSU has been a bit inconsistent as they have lost two of their last three. They did manage to pick up a win in their last game, though, as they beat Missouri 75-55 at home.
In the win, Tari Eason led all scorers with 18 points in just 20 minutes of action. Brandon Murray also added 11 for the Tigers.
Arkansas comes into this one, having won four in a row. Even more impressive is the fact that two of those wins came over ranked teams as they took down both No. 13 Tennessee and No. 7 Kentucky. In Saturday’s win over Kentucky, they just held on to a 75-73 victory.
JD Notae matched a game-high with 30 points to go along with eight assists. Jaylin Williams had a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Arkansas is the favorite playing at home. They are -245 to win while the Tigers’ moneyline sits at +198. The spread features LSU +5.5 (-102), and the over/under for total points is 138.5.
More Odds
The Razorbacks are tied for the 14th-best odds of winning the National Championship this season at +5000. The Tigers are +8000 to win it all.
By The Numbers
Arkansas holds the advantage on the offensive side. They rank 26th in scoring averaging 77.4 points per game (79.5 at home). The Tigers rank 107th, averaging 72.9 points (66.5 on the road).
Defensively, it is LSU with the edge. They rank 19th overall in scoring defense as they are allowing opponents an average of just 61.9 points per game (66.5 on the road). Arkansas ranks 125th allowing 67.6 points (64.6 at home).
LSU Has To Play Better On The Road
While the LSU Tigers have a solid record overall at 20-9, they have been absolutely dreadful on the road this season. In fact, they are currently 2-7 away from their own campus and have lost six of their last seven.
Trying to reverse those fortunes for Will Wade’s Tigers is leading scorer Tari Eason. This season, the sophomore forward has averaged 16.5 points on 52.4% shooting. He is also averaging 6.9 rebounds, two steals, and 1.1 blocks per game.
The Tigers have three others averaging double digits in Darius Days (13.1 points, 7.8 rebounds), Xavier Pinson (10.3 points, 2.6 rebounds, 4.6 assists), and Brandon Murray (10 points, 2.8 rebounds).
Arkansas Needs To Stay Focused On Wednesday’s Game
The regular-season finale is a big one for Arkansas as they travel to take on No. 13 Tennessee. While that has implications for both the SEC and their overall seeding in the NCAA tournament, the Razorbacks can’t overlook LSU. The Tigers played them close back in January, and they will be looking to upset Arkansas on Wednesday.
Leading the Razorbacks’ squad is senior guard JD Notae. This season, Notae has been electric, averaging 19.1 points on 42.4% shooting. He consistently fills the stat sheet as he is also averaging 4.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.2 steals per game for Arkansas.
Other major contributors for the Razorbacks include Stanley Umude (11.2 points, 4.7 rebounds), Jaylin Williams (10.6 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists), and Au’Diese Toney (10.1 points, 5.3 rebounds).
Take Arkansas To Win And Cover
Without a doubt, LSU plays ferocious defense. They are one of the best in the country at forcing turnovers and can make life miserable on opposing offenses.
Despite this, LSU is just a whole different team on the road. They have struggled to find any consistency as they only have two road wins all season.
On the flip side, they only have two losses at home, but one of those two losses was against Arkansas. If the Razorbacks could get it done on the road, they will certainly be able to get it done at home, where they are 16-2 this season.
Take Arkansas to both win and cover the 5.5-point spread.
