East Carolina Pirates vs UAB Blazers Prediction, 3/8/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: East Carolina Pirates vs UAB Blazers

Date: Sunday, March 8, 2026

Location: Bartow Arena in Birmingham, AL

TV: ESPN+

The UAB Blazers (19-11) will go up against the East Carolina Pirates (11-19) at Bartow Arena on Sunday.

The East Carolina Pirates faced Tulsa and ended up losing by a score of 93-66 in their last contest. When it comes to personal fouls, the Pirates ended up finishing with 15 while Tulsa racked up 17 personal fouls. They also made 11 out of their 26 tries from downtown. Tulsa ended up shooting 70.0% from the charity stripe by knocking down 14 of their 20 attempts. Moreover, Tulsa snagged 28 rebounds (9 offensive, 19 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Tulsa earned 21 assists and had 9 steals in this matchup. In regard to defending, East Carolina let their opponent shoot 56.7% from the floor on 34 out of 60 shooting. They also doled out 11 assists for this game as well as forcing the opposition into 6 turnovers and earning 5 steals. When talking about pulling down boards, they earned 29 with 14 of them being of the offensive variety. When they shot from the free throw line, the Pirates converted 19 of their 27 shots for a percentage of 70.4%. East Carolina finished having earned a 36.4% field goal percentage (20 out of 55) and made 7 of their 22 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Jordan Riley is a guy who was a factor for this game. He finished the game shooting 33.3% from the field and also totaled 6 dimes. He was on the hardwood for 37 minutes and snagged 6 boards. He accounted for 26 points on 7 out of 21 shooting.

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East Carolina will enter this game with a win-loss record of 11-19 so far this year. They average 71.1 points per game (287th in D-1) while shooting 41.9% from the field. The Pirates are shooting 28.7% on 3-point shots (159 of 554) and 70.2% from the charity stripe. As a unit, East Carolina is pulling in 36.3 boards per game and has racked up 351 dimes for the year, which has them ranked 340th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They are losing possession via turnover 12.2 times per game and as a team they are committing 16.2 personal fouls per contest.

When they are on the defensive end, the Pirates are forcing their opponents into 11.5 turnovers per contest and they draw 18.8 personal fouls. They are giving up 34.9% on shots from distance and they are ranked 261st in college hoops in opponents PPG (77.0). The Pirates are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 44.9% (820 of 1,825) and they relinquish 36.0 boards per contest as a team. They rank 263rd in college in giving up assists with 442 relinquished for the season.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the UAB Blazers got the win with a final of 80-74 against Charlotte. The Blazers were able to corral 20 defensive boards and 15 offensive boards for a total of 35 for this game. They gave up possession of the ball 4 times, while recording 3 steals in this matchup. Charlotte earned 15 fouls for this game which got the Blazers to the charity stripe for a total of 20 tries. They were able to convert 20 of them for a rate of 100.0%. In reference to three-point shots, UAB made 4 of 18 tries (22.2%). Overall, the Blazers went 28 for 65 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 43.1%. The Blazers allowed Charlotte to bury 27 of 55 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 49.1% in this matchup. They finished 29.6% from distance by shooting 8 out of 27 and ended up going 12 of 17 from the charity stripe (70.6%). When talking about cleaning up the glass, UAB permitted Charlotte to get 25 in total (6 offensive).

Chance Westry ended up having an impact for the Blazers for the contest. He converted 6 of 13 for the matchup for a rate of 46.2%, and added 8 rebounds. He tallied 20 points in his 38 mins on the court and accounted for 11 dimes in this contest.

UAB has a win-loss record of 19-11 for the campaign. When it comes to offensive execution, the Blazers are connecting on 43.8% from the floor, which ranks 274th in college hoops. UAB has accumulated 2,367 points this season (78.9 per contest) and they grab 40.4 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 13.8 times per game (186th in the country) and they lose possession via turnover 9.0 times per game. The Blazers have committed 14.4 personal fouls per contest and they shoot 70.7% from the charity stripe.

The UAB defense concedes 31.7% on shots from distance (233 of 736) and opponents are knocking down 72.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 13.2 assists and 36.1 rebounds per contest, which is 168th and 287th in college. The Blazers are ranked 163rd in college in PPG surrendered with 73.2. They are able to force 11.9 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 43.0% from the floor (106th in college).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take East Carolina

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