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Lamar Cardinals @ Akron Zips

Current Records: Lamar 1-2, Akron 1-2

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The Lamar Cardinals are taking a road trip to face off against the Akron Zips at 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday at James A. Rhodes Arena. The Cardinals are expected to lose this one by 10.5 points, so we'll see if that gives them a bit of motivation.

Last Sunday, Lamar couldn't handle Sam Houston and fell 85-72. The Cardinals haven't had much luck with the Bearkats recently, as the team's come up short the last three times they've met.

Despite their loss, Lamar saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Andrew Holifield, who went 5 for 7 en route to 15 points plus six rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Adam Hamilton was another key player, earning 13 points.

Even though they lost, Lamar smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 22 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since back in December of 2023.

Meanwhile, Akron suffered their biggest defeat since November 21, 2023 last Tuesday. They fell victim to a bruising 87-68 loss at the hands of Saint Mary's.

Like Lamar, Akron lost despite seeing results from several players. Amani Lyles led the charge by going 5 for 7 en route to 15 points. The dominant performance also gave Lyles a new career-high in threes (five). Another player making a difference was Josiah Harris, who had 16 points.

Lamar now has a losing record at 1-2. As for Akron, their defeat was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 1-2.

Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as both are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Lamar hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 85.3 points per game. However, it's not like Akron struggles in that department as they've been averaging 77. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.

Odds

Akron is a big 10.5-point favorite against Lamar, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 10.5-point spread, and stayed right there.


The over/under is 145 points.

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