Cal State Bakersfield vs Hawaii Predictions and Odds (Jan. 28)
The Rainbow Warriors are 10-10 ATS this season, 6-7 at home. Bakersfield is 6-12 ATS, 2-7 on the road. The total has gone under in eight of Hawaii’s 13 home games.
Hawaii: Mr. Consistency
Rainbow Warriors coach Eran Ganot has had the luxury of using the same starting lineup in all 20 games this, and the group has responded with the type of consistency that prompted coaches to pick them to finish second in the Big West in the preseason poll. Hawaii had won 10 of its last 12 before losing to preseason league favorite USCB 65-64 the last time out Thursday on a driving left-handed layup high off the glass by Big West Player of the Year candidate Ajay Mitchell with 1.9 seconds remaining.
All five Hawaii starters average at least 9.8 points and at least 27.4 minutes per game, led by preseason all-league guard 6’4 Noel Coleman (14.1 points). Texas transfer Kamaka Hepa is averaging 10.7 points and 7.0 rebounds in his second year in the program, and 5’11 point Jovon McClanahan (10.6 points) and 6’9 forward Bernardo da Silva (10.5 points, 7.3 rebounds) are right behind. Athletic Da Silva has played his best recently. He has scored at least 18 points in three of his last six games, with two of his six double-digit rebounding game.
The ‘Bows are not a particularly efficient offensive team but compensate by holding teams to 39.4 percent field goal shooting, 19th in Division I. That and a plus-3.1 rebounding margin works with their slow pace of play. They are one of 10 teams to have had each opponent under 80 points.
Cal State Bakersfield Banged Up
The Roadrunners were off to a slow start this season, and things have only gotten worse after they lost point guard and leading scorer 5’10 Kaleb Higgins to a season-ending injury in a 61-51 home victory over Big West bottom feeder Cal Poly on Jan. 5. Higgins was averaging 13.1 points and 3.9 assists, and in his absence coach, Rod Graves has tried four different lineups while going 1-5 in the last six games with sophomore guard 6’4 Ivan Reynolds doing much of the ball-handling.
Antavion Collum (9.8 points, 4.7 rebounds) had a season-high 20 points in the Roadrunners’ 79-58 home loss to UC Davis on Thursday. Senior forward 6’7 Cameron Smith (7.0 points, 5.4 points) erupted for a career-high 27 points in a 76-58 loss at UCSB the previous Saturday, but the offense has wobbled between sporadic and suspect this season.
The Roadrunners are shooting 40.8 percent from the field, near the bottom of Division I, and their outside game is even less effective. They are averaging 12.6 three-point attempts and 4.2 makes per game, both in the last four in the nation. Lithuanian big men Ugnius Jarusevicius and Modestas Kancleris have missed the last two games with undisclosed injuries.
Cal State Bakersfield vs Hawaii Prediction
Hawaii won both meetings by an average of eight points last season, and the caution here is a possible Rainbows’ letdown after the last-second loss to UCSB. Had the ‘Bows won that game, they would have moved into a three-way tie for first place in the Big West. Because both teams play at a deliberate pace, the points are the play here.
- Pick: Cal State Bakersfield +15.5 (-108)
- Season CBK: 27-14 ATS
