Memphis Tigers vs Rice Owls Prediction, 1/3/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Memphis Tigers vs Rice Owls

Date: Saturday, January 3, 2026

Location: Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, TX

TV: ESPN+

The Rice Owls (6-8) host the Memphis Tigers (6-7) at Tudor Fieldhouse on Saturday.

The Memphis Tigers played North Texas and notched a win by a score of 57-48 in their last contest. Memphis finished having earned a 47.1% FG percentage (24 out of 51) and knocked down 5 out of their 18 shots from distance. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Tigers knocked down 4 of their 15 attempts for a rate of 26.7%. When it comes to grabbing rebounds, they earned 32 with 12 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 16 dimes in this contest as well as forcing 18 turnovers and having 13 steals. In terms of defense, Memphis allowed the other team to go 36.4% from the floor on 20 of 55 shooting. North Texas dished out 8 assists and had 14 steals in the matchup. Furthermore, North Texas pulled down 29 boards (8 offensive, 21 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. North Texas finished the game shooting 62.5% when shooting free throws by burying 5 of their 8 tries. They also converted 1 of 18 shots from three-point range. Regarding personal fouls, the Tigers finished with 14 and North Texas totaled 18 personal fouls.

Zachary Davis is one guy who had an impact for this contest. He ended up shooting 45.5% from the field and also earned 1 assist. He was on the hardwood for 23 minutes and totaled 6 rebounds. He left the arena with 12 points on 5 out of 11 shooting.

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Memphis heads into this game with a mark of 6-7 for the campaign. They average 74.0 points per outing (267th in D-1) while hitting 42.8% from the field. The Tigers are hitting 31.8% on three-point shots (91 of 286) and 67.8% from the free throw line. As a unit, Memphis is collecting 37.9 rebounds per game and has racked up 184 dimes for the season, which ranks 242nd in the country in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession via turnover 14.8 times per contest and as a group they commit 20.4 fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Tigers are forcing 14.0 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.7 fouls. They are ranked 212th in college in allowing assists to their opponents with 186 conceded so far this season. The Tigers defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 41.0% (315 of 769) and they concede 36.5 boards per game as a unit. They surrender 30.7% on shots from downtown and they are 188th in the nation in PPG allowed (73.5).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Rice Owls went home defeated by a final of 97-48 when they faced Tulsa. The Owls snagged 12 defensive boards and 7 offensive boards totaling 19 in the matchup. They also gave up possession of the ball 12 times, while getting 9 steals in this contest. Tulsa committed 13 fouls for the game which got the Owls to the free throw line for 17 attempts. They were able to make 10 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 58.8%. In reference to shots from beyond the arc, Rice converted 6 of 27 attempts (22.2%). When the final whistle blew, the Owls finished the game shooting 16 out of 57 from the field which had them shooting 28.1%. The Owls allowed Tulsa to make 37 of 60 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 61.7% for the matchup. They finished 68.4% from distance by going 13 of 19 and ended up shooting 10 of 12 at the charity stripe (83.3%). When discussing cleaning the glass, Rice permitted Tulsa to pull down 35 in all (6 on the offensive glass).

Nick Anderson ended up having an impact for the Owls for the contest. He racked up 17 points in his 25 minutes on the hardwood, but finished this game without an assist. He converted 5 of 13 for this game giving him a rate of 38.5%, and accumulated 2 rebounds.

Rice has a win-loss record of 6-8 so far this season. As an offense, the Owls are connecting on 41.5% from the floor, which has them ranked 331st in the country. Rice has totaled 1,038 pts on the campaign (74.1 per game) and they pull down 38.4 rebounds per contest. They are assisting teammates 12.7 times per contest (296th in Division 1) and they lose possession via turnover 12.7 times per contest. The Owls commit 18.1 personal fouls per contest and they shoot 68.4% from the free throw line.

The Owls on the defensive end are ranked 204th in college in points given up per game with 74.0. They are forcing 13.3 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 44.1% from the field (225th in the country). The Rice defense surrenders 34.9% on shots from behind the 3-point line (106 of 304) and opponents are connecting on 71.0% of their free throw attempts. They have conceded 13.5 assists and 37.1 total boards per game, which ranks them 200th and 291st in those categories.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Rice

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