Portland Pilots vs Saint Mary’s Gaels Matchup

Read on to get betting odds and analysis in our Saint Mary's vs Portland NCAA Basketball prediction and preview and see who we think will win and cover the spread in Portland.

Saint Mary's vs Portland Prediction

Planning on watching today's Gaels and Pilots game? Catch the action at Chiles Center in Portland, OR, as the Pilots hosts this showdown at 10:00 ET on ESPN+. Saint Mary's is favored by -18.5 in this West Coast conference showdown. The game's over/under is currently at 139.5 points.

Saint Mary's vs. Portland Matchup At A Glance

Sport: NCAAB
Teams: Saint Mary's Gaels at Portland Pilots
Where: Portland at Chiles Center
Date: Saturday, January 4th
Betting Odds STMRY -18.5, STMRY -3123 | PORT +1133 O/U 139.5

Gaels Preview: Will the Gaels Defense Show Up on the Road?

Saint Mary's Gaels Recent Game/Games

Saint Mary's improved to 11-3 on the season with a dominant 71-41 win over Pepperdine on Thursday. The Gaels, who were -17 favorites, covered the spread with ease.

Saint Mary's led 35-20 at halftime and continued their strong play in the 2nd half, outscoring the Waves 36-21. The game total of 112 points was well under the O/U line of 141.5.

Gaels Offense Breakdown

Saint Mary's put up 71 points in their latest game, shooting 41.2% from the field. They struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just 20.7% of their threes, but were effective inside, connecting on 56.4% of their two-point attempts.

The Gaels grabbed 19 offensive rebounds and dished out 19 assists, with Luke Barrett leading the way with 16 points and 8 boards. Moe Odum and Mikey Lewis each added 14 points, with Odum hitting 50% of his threes.

Gaels Team Defense

Saint Mary's Gaels put up a strong defensive performance, holding their opponent to just 41 points. The Gaels allowed a 41% shooting rate, with their opponent hitting 28 of 68 shots.

Inside the arc, their opponent shot 56%, making 22 of 39 two-point attempts. From three-point range, they were limited to 6 of 29 shooting, or 20%. The Gaels also sent their opponent to the line 11 times, where they made 9 free throws, or 81%.

Pilots Preview: Does Portland Have What it Takes to Win as Home Underdogs?

Portland’s season continued to be a struggle after an 81-50 road loss to Gonzaga on Thursday, dropping their record to 3-11. Despite being massive +34.5 underdogs, the Pilots managed to cover the spread. The game’s total points of 131 fell short of the 158.5 O/U line.

Portland trailed 35-17 at halftime but showed some fight in the 2nd half, scoring 33 points while allowing 46.

Pilots Offense Breakdown

Portland's offense struggled in their last game, managing just 50 points on 33.3% shooting from the field. Their effective field goal percentage was 36.5%, and they hit only 4 of 25 attempts from beyond the arc, shooting 16% from three-point range.

Nolan Hickman led the way with 13 points, hitting 3 of 5 from deep and shooting 62.5% overall. Vincent Delano and Dusty Stromer each added 12 points, with Stromer hitting 2 threes at a 40% clip.

Pilots Team Defense

Portland's defense gave up 81 points in their last game, with opponents shooting 42% from the field. They allowed 29 field goals on 68 attempts.

From three-point range, the opposition hit 11 of 24 shots, good for 45%. Portland also sent them to the line 16 times, where they made 12 free throws.

Gaels vs Pilots Betting Odds, Trends & Analysis

Through their last ten road games, Saint Mary's has an ATS record of just 8-2. However, their overall record was 9-1 while averaging 74 points per game.
Portland has a 1-4 record in their last five home games. In this stretch, they averaged 63 points per game while allowing 80. The team also performed well vs the spread at 3-2.
Through their last three games as the betting underdog, the Pilots have a strong record vs the spread going 2-1. Their straight up mark in these contests is 0-3.
Against the spread, the Gaels have put together of 1-4 in their last five games as the betting favorite. In these same games, they went 3-2 straight up.