Akron Zips vs Ball State Cardinals Prediction, 2/19/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Akron Zips vs Ball State Cardinals

Date: Friday, February 19, 2021

Location: Worthen Arena in Muncie, IN

TV: CBSSN

Odds/Point Spread: Akron (-3)

Worthen Arena is the site where and the Ball State Cardinals (7-10) will take on the Akron Zips (13-4) on Friday. Ball State opens this game as 3-point dogs. The total has been set at 143.

Akron steps onto the court with a mark of 13-4 for the campaign. They lose possession via turnover 12.3 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 17.6 fouls per game. As a team, Akron is pulling in 38.8 boards per contest and has racked up 239 assists for the season, which is 186th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. The Zips are connecting on 34.7% on three-point shots (173 of 499) and 75.9% from the free throw line. They average 78.8 pts per contest (41st in D-1) while connecting on 45.8% from the floor. When they are on the defensive end, the Zips are able to force 12.2 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.9 personal fouls. The Zips defense is giving up a FG percentage of 42.5% (441 of 1,037) and they surrender 34.3 boards per contest as a team. They are ranked 85th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 193 relinquished for the season. They surrender 30.1% from 3-point land while they are 156th in college basketball in points per game allowed (69.4).

The Akron Zips faced off with the Northern Illinois Huskies and earned the victory with a final of 81-76 in their last game. Akron finished the contest with a 38.5% FG percentage (20 out of 52) and knocked down 11 of 28 3-point shots. When they shot from the free throw line, the Zips buried 30 of their 35 shots for a percentage of 85.7%. With respect to rebounding, they compiled 33 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. They also doled out 12 dimes for the matchup in addition to earning 4 steals and 7 blocks. In the matter of defense, Akron allowed the other team to go 38.5% from the floor on 20 out of 52 shooting. Northern Illinois doled out 14 dimes and had 5 steals for the game. In addition, the Huskies snagged 37 boards (17 offensive, 20 defensive) and earned 7 blocks. Northern Illinois shot 71.4% at the free throw line by making 5 of their 7 shots. They also knocked down 9 out of their 22 attempts from beyond the arc.

Bryan Trimble is a guy who was a major factor for the matchup. He notched 22 points on 6 of 13 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 35 mins played and snagged 3 rebounds. Trimble finished 46.2% from the field and also totaled 2 dimes. One more player that was a determining factor in this contest for the Zips was Loren Cristian Jackson. He totaled 2 rebounds and also totaled 7 assists. He finished the game at 26.7% from the field for this contest by going 4-of-15 (19 points). In all, Jackson played 33 min.

Ball State has a record of 7-10 so far this year. The Cardinals are responsible for committing 18.8 personal fouls every game while shooting 72.0% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 12.8 times per game (206th in Division 1) and they are giving up possession 14.4 times per game. Ball State has totaled 1,194 points this year (70.2 per contest) and they snag 36.3 boards per contest. When it comes to offensive execution, the Cardinals are hitting on 42.7% from the floor, which ranks them 252nd in D-1. The Cardinals on the defensive end are ranked 246th in college hoops in points given up per game with 73.0. They have forced 12.9 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 42.3% from the field (139th in the nation). The Ball State defense gives up 29.6% on shots from behind the 3-point line (115 of 388) and their opponents are knocking down 68.7% of their shots from the charity stripe. They concede 12.4 dimes and 38.5 boards per game, which is 133rd and 311th in D-1.

In their last game, the Ball State Cardinals took a loss by a final score of 75-62 when they faced the Bowling Green Falcons. The Cardinals corralled 24 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards for a total of 33 in this contest. They blocked 5 attempts while earning 2 steals for the matchup. The Falcons were called for 12 personal fouls in the matchup which took the Cardinals to the charity stripe for 6 tries. They were able to bury 5 of the free throws for a rate of 83.3%. In relation to shots from beyond the perimeter, Ball State converted 5 of their 23 attempts (21.7%). Overall, the Cardinals went 26 for 56 from the field which had them shooting 46.4%. The Cardinals permitted the Falcons to convert 29 out of 74 tries from the floor which left them with a rate of 39.2% in the matchup. They went 25.9% from three-point range via 7 of 27 and walked away from this one shooting 10 of 13 at the charity stripe (76.9%). When it comes to cleaning the glass, Ball State allowed Bowling Green to grab 36 in total (17 offensive).

Ishmael El-Amin ended up being important for the Cardinals in the game. He converted 5 of 9 in the game for a rate of 55.6%, which got him 11 points. El-Amin grabbed 2 boards in his 35 mins and totaled 2 assists for this game. One more player who was a determining factor for Ball State was Jarron Coleman. He finished with 11 points in 31 minutes played via 4 out of 9 shooting for the matchup. Coleman walked away from this one going 44.4% from the floor in addition to earning 6 dimes and 6 total rebounds.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Ball State (+3)

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