St. Mary’s vs Towson Prediction 11-4-24 College Basketball Picks

The Towson Tigers and the St. Mary’s Gaels meet Monday in College Basketball action from McKeon Pavilion. Here’s a St. Mary’s vs Towson prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best St. Mary’s vs Towson pick.

Towson Tigers Betting Preview

Towson managed a 20-14 effort in 2023-24 with an 11-7 run in Coastal Athletic Association Games. The Tigers finished in fifth place among the standings, behind Charleston, Drexel, Hofstra and UNC Wilmington. An eventual loss to Charleston in the CAA Tournament would finish off their season.

The Tigers’ Pat Skerry comes back to the head coaching slot this year, and he’ll have four of his five starters back in the mix. The lone loss is a big one, though: five-year player Charles Thompson, who accumulated 1,363 points and 1,004 rebounds during his tenure.

St. Mary’s Gaels Betting Preview

Over on the Gaels’ side, they posted a nice regular-season run last year with a 26-8 record and a 15-1 mark in the WCC. That put St. Mary’s atop the standings, and the Gaels would eventually win the conference tourney. The season ended with a First-Round national tournament loss to Grand Canyon, however.

This year St. Mary’s is back with 24th-year head coach Randy Bennett. He’ll have two of his five starters back from last year. Notable losses include Alex Ducas (graduation), Mason Forbes (graduation) and Aidan Mahaney (transferred to UConn).

Why the Saint Mary’s Gaels will win

• Saint Mary’s has won each of its last 10 night games at University Credit Union Pavilion against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Towson has lost three of its last four night games against non-Conference opponents.
• Saint Mary’s has won the first half in each of its last 12 games at University Credit Union Pavilion against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Why the Towson Tigers will win

• Towson has won four of its last five night games.
• Towson has won the first half in each of its last five games against non-Conference opponents.

Matchup/League Facts

• Saint Mary’s ranked 1st among Division 1 teams for opponent rebounds per game last season (27.7).
• Saint Mary’s ranked 1st among Division 1 teams for rebound percentage last season (58.8%).
• Towson ranked 7th among Division 1 teams for rebound percentage last season (56.0%).
• Towson ranked 355th among Division 1 teams for pace last season (62.8).

St. Mary’s vs Towson Prediction

I’m going to stick with Towson. The Tigers should have some excellent rebounding capabilities again this year. In 2023-24, Towson ranked second nationally in offensive rebounding percentage (39.8) and they’re 38-16 in the CAA in the last three seasons. CAA Rookie of the Year Tyler Tejada (10.1 PPG) will be a big weapon after shooting 39 percent from 3-point range in CAA matchups.

As for St. Mary’s, they’ve got some significant losses to deal with but there’s plenty of talent left to fill the gaps. Augustas Marciulionis (12.4 PPG) led the Gaels in assists and steals and was the team’s second-highest scorer last year. He should help St. Mary’s start off well this season. In this opener however, I like Towson to eke out the cover.