Bryant and Maine play for America East Championship
Maine Black Bears (20-13, 12-6 America East) at Bryant Bulldogs (22-11, 16-2 America East)
Smithfield, Rhode Island; Saturday, 11 a.m. EDT
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Bulldogs -7.5; over/under is 144
BOTTOM LINE: Bryant and Maine play for the America East Championship.
The Bulldogs are 16-2 against America East opponents and 6-9 in non-conference play. Bryant leads the America East with 26.1 defensive rebounds per game led by Earl Timberlake averaging 6.0.
The Black Bears are 12-6 against America East teams. Maine is second in the America East giving up 65.7 points while holding opponents to 43.0% shooting.
Bryant averages 7.9 made 3-pointers per game, 1.2 more made shots than the 6.7 per game Maine allows. Maine has shot at a 46.5% rate from the field this season, 4.9 percentage points above the 41.6% shooting opponents of Bryant have averaged.
The teams meet for the third time this season. The Bulldogs won 80-72 in the last matchup on March 1. Rafael Pinzon led the Bulldogs with 28 points, and Quion Burns led the Black Bears with 15 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Pinzon is shooting 39.1% from beyond the arc with 2.8 made 3-pointers per game for the Bulldogs, while averaging 18.7 points. Timberlake is averaging 15.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.2 blocks over the last 10 games.
AJ Lopez is scoring 14.6 points per game with 2.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists for the Black Bears. Kellen Tynes is averaging 13.6 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 48.6% over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Bulldogs: 8-2, averaging 79.0 points, 38.7 rebounds, 14.9 assists, 5.9 steals and 7.2 blocks per game while shooting 45.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 70.1 points per game.
Black Bears: 6-4, averaging 69.4 points, 26.4 rebounds, 15.4 assists, 8.1 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 45.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 66.1 points.
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