Eastern Illinois Panthers vs Kentucky Wildcats Prediction, 11/14/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Eastern Illinois Panthers vs Kentucky Wildcats

Date: Friday, November 14, 2025

Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY

TV: SECN+

The Eastern Illinois Panthers (1-2) are en route to Rupp Arena on Friday where they will attempt to defeat the Kentucky Wildcats (2-1).

The Eastern Illinois Panthers stepped onto the hardwood against Notre Dame and took a loss by a score of 78-58 in their last game. When discussing fouls, the Panthers ended up finishing with 17 while Notre Dame totaled 15 fouls. They made 9 of their 28 shots from 3-point range. Notre Dame ended up going 73.3% when shooting free throws by knocking down 11 of 15 tries. Additionally, Notre Dame pulled down 35 boards (14 offensive, 21 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Notre Dame distributed 13 dimes and had 4 steals for this contest. In reference to defending, Eastern Illinois let their opponent shoot 48.3% from the floor on 29 out of 60 shooting. They also recorded 8 assists in the matchup as well as creating 10 turnovers and earning 2 steals. In reference to pulling down rebounds, they collected a total of 22 with 7 of them being on the offensive end. At the free throw line, the Panthers buried 10 of 12 attempts for a rate of 83.3%. Eastern Illinois walked away from the contest having earned a 38.9% FG percentage (21 of 54) and buried 6 of 21 three-point shots.

Kooper Jacobi is a guy who was a major factor in this matchup. He shot 50.0% from the floor but wasn't able to get an assist. He saw the court for 35 minutes and snagged 3 rebounds. He racked up 20 points on 8 of 16 shooting.

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Eastern Illinois will play this contest with a win-loss record of 1-2 on the season. They have an average of 62.0 pts per contest (350th in the nation) while hitting 38.2% from the floor. The Panthers are shooting 27.1% on shots from beyond the arc (13 of 48) and 79.2% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Eastern Illinois is pulling in 36.0 boards per contest and has accumulated 28 assists on the year, which is 332nd in the nation in terms of passing the ball. They are turning it over 15.7 times per game and as a squad are committing 22.0 personal fouls per contest.

On the defensive end of the court, the Panthers are forcing 11.7 turnovers per contest while drawing 20.3 personal fouls. They are ranked 66th in college in allowing assists to the opposition with 28 conceded this year. The Panthers are allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 37.5% (66 of 176) and they concede 39.3 boards per game as a unit. They surrender 23.5% on shots from distance and they are ranked 111th in D-1 in PPG from their opponents (67.0).

When they last played, the Kentucky Wildcats walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 96-88 against Louisville. The Wildcats collected 29 defensive boards and 11 offensive boards for a total of 40 in this contest. They also gave up possession of the ball 14 times, while getting 4 steals in this game. Louisville was called for 19 fouls in this game which took the Wildcats to the charity stripe for a total of 16 attempts. They were able to convert 12 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 75.0%. Concerning three-point shots, Kentucky buried 12 of their 34 attempts (35.3%). When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats finished 32 for 68 from the field which gave them a percentage of 47.1%. The Wildcats allowed Louisville to convert 31 of 69 attempts from the floor which left them with a shooting percentage of 44.9% for this contest. They wrapped up this game 32.5% from beyond the perimeter by going 13 out of 40 and ended up shooting 21 of 31 from the free throw line (67.7%). When discussing rebounds, Kentucky permitted Louisville to get 37 in total (12 offensive).

Denzel Aberdeen ended up having an impact for the Wildcats in this game. He knocked down 10 out of 20 for the contest for a field goal rate of 50.0%, and had 7 rebounds. He had 26 points in his 31 minutes on the court and had 3 dimes in the matchup.

Kentucky has a record of 2-1 so far this year. When it comes to offensive execution, the Wildcats are connecting on 49.5% from the field, which is ranked 83rd in college. Kentucky has 272 pts for the year (90.7 per contest) and they pull in 47.7 rebounds per contest. Their rate of earning assists is at 20.7 times per contest (25th in college) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 11.0 times per contest. The Wildcats are responsible for committing 18.0 fouls per contest and they shoot 71.9% from the charity stripe.

The Kentucky defense surrenders 25.5% on shots from beyond the perimeter (25 of 98) and their opposition makes 67.1% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have allowed 13.3 dimes and 34.7 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 207th and 171st in the nation. The Wildcats on the defensive side of the court are 141st in Division 1 in PPG allowed with 68.7. They are forcing their opponents into 9.0 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 34.9% from the field (27th in D-1).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Kentucky

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