Nevada vs San Francisco Picks and Odds (Nov. 18)

• The San Francisco Dons vie for a fourth straight win to open the season when they host the struggling Nevada Wolf pack on Thursday as home favorites
• The Dons have dominated during a 4-0 SU run, while Nevada returns to action after suffering consecutive outright losses as betting favorites
• Read on for all the odds and trends ahead of Thursday night’s matchup at War Memorial Gymnasium

The San Francisco Dons will be looking to extend their season-opening straight up win streak to five games when they entertain the visiting Nevada Wold Pack on Thursday as 8-point home favorites. Tip off is set for 10:30pm ET on Wednesday night on the Dons’ home court at War memorial Gymnasium.

Nevada Wolf Pack vs San Francisco Dons Odds

*Odds at FanDuel as of November 17, 2021.

Wolf Pack vs Dons Betting Trends

Thursday night’s matchup marks the second meeting between these teams in as many years, but is their first date in San Francisco since 2013. The Dons have claimed outright victory in each of their past two clashes with Nevada, each while pegged as road underdogs, capped by last year’s 85-60 rout of the Wolf Pack. That ended a four-game SU win streak for the Wolf Pack against the Dons, a run that featured a pair of victories in San Francisco, also as road underdogs.

Apart from the Dons’ blowout victory last November, meetings between these two teams have tended to be hard fought affairs, with three of their past five clashes getting settled by three or fewer points. Low scoring was also once commonplace in head-to-head action. However, that has changed of late, with the total reaching 145 or higher in two of their past three, sparking a 2-1 run for the OVER.

Nevada Wolf Pack Outlook

It has been a tough start to the new campaign for the Nevada Wolf Pack. Fresh off a 26-10 campaign in 2020/2021 that marked their sixth straight winning season, the Wolf Pack have stumbled out of the gate. In the wake of a crushing 96-74 road loss to Santa Clara as slim 1.5-point road chalk, the Wolf Pack now sport a 1-2 straight up record. The squad will now be aiming to avoid losing three in a row for the first time since March 2015 when they hit the hardwood on Thursday night.

Final: Santa Clara 96, Nevada 74. The Wolf Pack was outscored by 25 points in the second half. Santa Clara shoots 52.9 percent from the field. Nevada gets blow out despite hitting 13 threes. The Wolf Pack’s defense is problematic. Nevada falls to 1-2. At San Fran on Thursday.

— Chris Murray (@ByChrisMurray) November 17, 2021

Nevada faced little resistance while marching to a 91-76 win over Eastern Washington in last week’s season opener, but failed to cover as heavy 21-point chalk. Things took a negative turn in their next outing, a stunning 75-68 loss to San Diego while listed as heavy 14-point home favorites, and now have nowhere to go but up in the wake of Monday’s loss to the Broncos.

Today's player preview features the preseason Mountain West player of the year, @gsherfield5.

More » https://t.co/lrcgiTBVwU pic.twitter.com/xymCgVzSCo

— Nevada Sports Net (@NevadaSportsNet) November 7, 2021

Despite those struggles, there are positives to consider. Last season’s leading scorers have maintained their pace in the early going. Junior guard Grant Sherfield is coming off a 23-point performance in Monday’s defeat, and has reclaimed his familiar perch atop the team stats with 17.7 points per game. Desmond Cambridge Jr. added 18 points, and also drained a team-high 22 points in the squad’s opening-night win. However, they received little support in Monday’s defeat, with the team’s other three starters combining to score just nine total points.

San Francisco Dons Outlook

In stark contrast to the Wolf Pack’s shaky start, the San Francisco Dons have taken major strides towards overcoming a forgettable campaign during an impressive 4-0 SU start. The Dons continued to roll in their last outing on Monday. The squad led from wire to wire in a dominating 77-55 victory over the Samford Bulldogs, while paying out as sizeable 20.5-point chalk. Overall, San Francisco has claimed victory by double-digit margins on three occasions during their 4-0 SU run, and have trailed opponents for less than a combined five minutes.

FINAL: San Francisco stomps Samford at home, 77-55. Shook off a sluggish start and locked Samford down in the second. Dons held them scoreless for final 5:38. Jamaree Bouyea with 19 and Khalil Shabazz with 11 & 10. Dons improve to 4-0. #WCChoops

— Will Maupin (@willmaup) November 16, 2021

Winners in just 11 of 25 contests last season while averaging 71.4 points per game, the Dons have now scored 83.0 points per game during their fast start. That has made the squad a rising star in the Kenpom ratings, where they are currently pegged at No. 32 overall, and 35th in adjusted offence.

San Francisco guard duo of Jamaree Bouyea and Khalil Shabazz are explosive on offense but an underrate part of their game is how good the two are on defense. They combined for 10 steals during the Davidson win and kept Davidson's guards uncomfortable throughout the game.

— WCCBasketballExpert (@ExpertWcc) November 15, 2021

Senior guard Jamaree Bouyea has played a huge leadership role on offence. The team’s top scorer last season, Bouyea has powered the attack once again, averaging 17.3 points per game, capped by Monday’s 19-point outing. Another senior guard has also contributed. Kahlil Shabazz has tallied 15.0 points per game and recorded his first double-double of the season on Monday night.

The Pick: Dons -8.5 (-105); OVER 150.5 (-108)