There's a really good chance the Monmouth Hawks are done losing games now until the NCAA Tournament. They're 23-6 and are probably two wins away from reaching the dance regardless of whether they win the MAAC Tournament or not, and Friday's game against the Rider Broncs should really just be another walk in the park.
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HOW THE RIDER BRONCS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Just last week, Rider proved just how bad it really can be. The team actually outscored Monmouth 31-9 over the first eight minutes of the first half, and it led by 14 at the under 4:00 timeout in the fourth.
And then came the collapse.
The Hawks went on a 17-2 run the rest of the way and were helped out by three turnovers in the closing two minutes to cap off a 79-78 win.
Rider went on a nice binge of three-pointers against Monmouth on that 31-9 spurt, but duplicating that here on the road is going to be really tough. The Broncs only shoot 31.6 percent from deep, and Zedrec Sadler, who has just 18 made threes for the year, isn't going to knock down three in this one like he did in that game.
More realistically, the Broncs have to try to slow down Monmouth just a bit. Both Iona and St. Peter's had success doing so. The Gaels earned the upset on the road, and the Peacocks forced overtime.
HOW THE MONMOUTH HAWKS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Monmouth really has to find an answer here for not having Deon Jones in the lineup. The redshirt senior was one of the better ball handlers and defenders the Hawks had, but his broken hand is very likely going to cost him the rest of the season.
He's missed two games since breaking his hand against Manhattan, and the Hawks have been beaten by Iona and probably should've been beaten by St. Peter's, scoring just 67 and 64 points in those games respectively in regulation.
The Hawks can play some defense too, but let's face the facts here: This is a team that is only going to go as far as momentum takes it. Monmouth averages 80.4 points per game and shoots 38.0 percent from downtown. If a third fiddle behind Justin Robinson and Micah Seaborn steps up to make up for the lost 10.4 points per game Jones left behind, the Hawks will be just fine. If not, they could struggle in this game.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Monmouth has lost its ways just a bit at just 1-3 ATS in its last four games, and the one cover should've been an ATS loss at St. Peter's.
We're really worried what's left of this team without Jones. Chris Brady is an adequate center, but he just doesn't fit the mold of the rest of this team. If all five of the Hawks can't get up and down the floor in a hurry, this offense will be largely ineffective, and that could spell disaster down the line.
Rider isn't good enough to hold off a team like Monmouth on the road, but we do think that it scores a cover against a betting line which will close higher than it should be.
Monmouth 77, Rider 68
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Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so starting betting with BookMaker today! The matchup between the Rider Broncs and the Monmouth Hawks will go down on Friday, February 26, 2016 at 9:00 p.m. ET at the Multipurpose Activity Center. You can watch the game live on ESPN2.
