Illinois State Redbirds vs Ball State Cardinals Prediction, 12/12/2020 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Illinois State Redbirds vs Ball State Cardinals

Date: Saturday, December 12, 2020

Location: Worthen Arena in Muncie, IN

TV: ESPN3

Odds/Point Spread: Illinois State (+5.5)

The Ball State Cardinals (2-2) play the Illinois State Redbirds (2-2) at Worthen Arena on Saturday. The odds on this matchup have Ball State as 5.5-point favorites. The total is set at 142.

Illinois State enters this game with a win-loss mark of 2-2 this year. They currently have an average of 97.8 pts per game (5th in college basketball) while connecting on 55.0% from the field. The Redbirds are hitting 34.9% on shots from distance (30 of 86) and 65.7% from the free throw line. As a unit, Illinois State is snagging 41.0 boards per game and is sitting with 88 assists this season, which is 36th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. They turn it over 14.3 times per game and as a squad they are committing 21.0 fouls every game. On the defensive end of the court, the Redbirds are forcing 15.0 turnovers per game and they draw 21.8 personal fouls. The Redbirds defensively are giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 43.9% (127 of 289) and they concede 39.3 boards per contest as a group. They are 219th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 61 surrendered this season. They give up 28.8% on shots from downtown and they rank 303rd in college basketball in points per game allowed (87.5).

The Illinois State Redbirds took the court against the Murray State Racers and took a loss by a score of 76-65 in their last game. Illinois State finished the game with a 40.3% field goal percentage (25 out of 62) and buried 5 of their 23 shots from beyond the arc. From the charity stripe, the Redbirds buried 10 of their 21 attempts for a rate of 47.6%. With respect to rebounding, they compiled 28 with 8 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 11 assists for the matchup as well as having 2 steals and 4 blocks. When it comes to the defense, Illinois State allowed the other team to go 40.3% from the floor on 25 of 62. Murray State recorded 20 dimes and 5 steals for the contest. Moreover, the Racers collected 41 rebounds (7 offensive, 34 defensive) and got 4 rejections. Murray State finished shooting 69.2% from the charity stripe by converting 9 of their 13 tries. They also converted 9 out of their 21 attempts from beyond the arc.

DJ Horne is a player who saw a lot of action for the contest. He racked up 11 points on 5 of 15 shooting. He was on the court for 36 minutes played and totaled 4 rebounds. Horne ended up going 33.3% from the field and distributed 2 dimes. Someone else that saw a lot of time on the hardwood in this contest for the Redbirds was Antonio Reeves. He had 2 boards and accounted for 2 dimes. He shot 46.2% from the field in this matchup by going 6-of-13 (16 points). Overall, Reeves played for 32 min.

Ball State has a win-loss record of 2-2 so far this year. The Cardinals are responsible for committing 19.5 fouls per contest and they go 65.5% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 10.0 times per game (283rd in college basketball) and they turn it over 10.5 times per game. Ball State has earned 285 points this season (71.3 per game) and they snag 35.3 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Cardinals are shooting 40.7% from the field, which is 282nd in the nation. The Cardinals on the defensive side of the court are 210th in D-1 in points per game surrendered with 73.5. The Ball State defense concedes 27.5% on 3-point attempts (22 of 80) and opponents are connecting on 66.7% of their shots from the charity stripe. They surrender 11.8 dimes and 39.3 boards every game, which is ranked 108th and 243rd in college hoops. They are forcing their opponents into 12.3 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 45.4% from the floor (239th in Division 1).

When they last played, the Ball State Cardinals took home the win by a final score of 79-70 when they played the Northern Illinois Huskies. The Cardinals collected 22 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive boards totaling 32 for the game. They rejected 2 tries while recording 4 steals in the game. The Huskies were called for 28 fouls in this matchup which got the Cardinals to the free throw line for a total of 39 attempts. They were able to knock down 25 of the free throw tries for a rate of 64.1%. With regard to 3-point shots, Ball State converted 10 of 29 attempts (34.5%). When all was said and done, the Cardinals finished the game shooting 22 out of 54 from the floor which had them shooting 40.7%. The Cardinals permitted the Huskies to convert 25 out of 60 tries from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 41.7% in the matchup. They finished 26.3% from three-point range via 5 of 19 and ended up shooting 15 out of 21 at the free throw line (71.4%). In the matter of rebounds, Ball State permitted Northern Illinois to pull down 33 in all (12 offensive).

Ishmael El-Amin was important for the Cardinals in this game. He knocked down 7 of 20 in this game for a field goal percentage of 35.0%, which gave him 18 points. El-Amin had 5 rebounds in his 40 mins and earned 4 assists in the matchup. Someone else that ended up being a major factor for Ball State was K.J. Walton. He ended up walking away with 18 points in 33 minutes played via 5 out of 9 shooting in this game. Walton finished going 55.6% from the floor and also contributing 2 assists and 2 rebounds.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Illinois State (+5.5)

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