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USATSI

The Appalachian State Mountaineers will take on the North Carolina Central Eagles at 6:30 p.m. ET in college basketball on Thursday at the Holmes Convocation Center. App. State went 19-15 last season and is coming off a 142-74 win over Warren Wilson on Monday while NC Central went 16-15 last season but lost to Virginia 73-61 on Monday. The two North Carolina-based programs have previously played each other twice.

App. State won the most recent matchup in 2018 while NC Central won a head-to-head meeting in 2013. This time around, the Mountaineers are favored by 5.5 points in the latest Appalachian State vs. North Carolina Central odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under is set at 135.5. Before you make any North Carolina Central vs. Appalachian State picks, you'll want to see the college basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past six years, the proprietary computer model has generated more than $1,200 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anybody who has followed it has seen profitable returns.

Now, the model has set its sights on App. State vs. NC Central. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball odds for App. State vs. NC Central:

  • App. State vs. NC Central spread: App. State -5.5
  • App. State vs. NC Central over-under: 135.5 points
  • App. State vs. NC Central picks: See picks at SportsLine

Why App. State can cover

The Mountaineers stole an NCAA Tournament bid last season with an impressive run through the Sun Belt conference tournament but were eliminated in the First Four against Norfolk State. However, Appalachian State only returns 38.6% of its scoring from last season so head coach Dustin Kerns is in the process of building a new rotation.

App. State had eight players score in double-figures on Monday in the win over Warren Wilson, a small liberal arts school in Asheville that plays in DIII. Christopher Mantis led the way with 22 points in just 18 minutes after playing a total of 117 minutes last season. 

Why NC Central can cover

NC Central opened its season with a tough matchup against No. 18 Virginia on Monday but hung tough in a 12-point loss. Justin Wright was the team's leading scorer last season (13.7 ppg) and he appears poised for a big season again this year. 

Wright had 20 points in the loss to Virginia while Eric Boone contributed 18 points. The Eagles went 8-for-19 from the 3-point line (42.1%) and that should be reason for optimism after the squad shot just 33.2% from deep last season.

How to make NC Central vs. App. State picks

The model has simulated App. State vs. NC Central 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in well over 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Appalachian State vs. North Carolina Central? And which side of the spread hits well over 60% percent of the time? Visit SportsLine to see which side of the NC Central vs. App. State spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up over $1,200 on its college basketball picks the last six years, and find out.