Murray State Racers vs Akron Zips Prediction, 12/13/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Murray State Racers vs Akron Zips

Date: Saturday, December 13, 2025

Location: Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, NV

TV: ESPN+

Lee's Family Forum is where the Akron Zips (8-2) will meet the Murray State Racers (7-3) on Saturday.

The Murray State Racers faced off with Bellarmine and notched a win by a score of 81-68 in their last contest. Murray State walked away from the contest with a 52.6% field goal percentage (30 of 57) and knocked down 11 of 30 3-point attempts. At the free throw line, the Racers made 10 of 11 attempts for a rate of 90.9%. In the matter of hauling in rebounds, they earned 33 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 18 assists for this game as well as forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and getting 4 steals. In regard to defense, Murray State let their opponent shoot 51.0% from the field on 25 out of 49 shooting. Bellarmine distributed 14 dimes and had 8 steals in this contest. Moreover, Bellarmine pulled down 16 boards (1 offensive, 15 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Bellarmine finished the game shooting 75.0% from the charity stripe by knocking down 12 of 16 tries. They made 6 out of their 18 attempts from distance. When talking about fouls, the Racers ended up finishing with 13 while Bellarmine finished the game with 12 fouls.

JJ Traynor is someone who came through for this game. He finished with 17 points on 8 of 12 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 27 minutes and pulled down 6 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 66.7% from the floor and recorded 2 dimes.

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Murray State will enter this contest with a win-loss record of 7-3 on the season. They are averaging 88.0 points per contest (34th in Division 1) while hitting 47.6% from the field. The Racers are hitting 36.1% on 3-point shots (106 of 294) and 74.7% from the free throw line. As a unit, Murray State is pulling down 39.0 rebounds per game and is sitting with 161 dimes this season, which is 75th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. They are giving up possession 12.5 times per contest and as a team they are committing 18.3 fouls per contest.

On defense, the Racers have forced 12.7 turnovers per contest and they draw 20.3 fouls. They are ranked 129th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 118 surrendered so far this season. The Racers defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 44.3% (285 of 644) and they relinquish 34.6 rebounds per game as a group. They concede 32.3% on shots from beyond the arc and they are 254th in the nation in points per game from their opponents (76.4).

For their last game, the Akron Zips walked away with a victory by a final of 88-71 against Tulane. Concerning how they rebounded, Akron permitted Tulane to get 24 in total (7 offensive). They went 21.2% from behind the 3-point line by connecting on 7 of 33 and finished the game at 16 out of 22 at the free throw line (72.7%). The Zips allowed Tulane to bury 24 out of their 62 attempts from the field which left them with a rate of 38.7% in the game. When this game wrapped up, the Zips ended up shooting 31 for 62 from the field which gave them a percentage of 50.0%. In regard to three-point attempts, Akron converted 13 out of their 31 tries (41.9%). They were able to make 13 of them for a rate of 76.5%. Tulane committed 13 personal fouls in the matchup which got the Zips to the free throw line for 17 shots. They also gave up possession 14 times, while getting 4 steals in this game. The Zips corralled 31 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards totaling 42 for the matchup.

Shammah Scott was important for the Zips for this game. He earned 20 points in his 32 mins on the court and earned 1 assist in this game. He converted 6 of 10 for this game giving him a field goal percentage of 60.0%, and tallied 4 rebounds.

Akron has a win-loss record of 8-2 this year. The Zips commit 15.5 fouls every game while shooting 73.7% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 21.0 times per contest (2nd in college) and they are giving up possession 10.4 times per game. Akron has scored 954 points for the year (95.4 per game) and they pull in 38.8 rebounds per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Zips are connecting on 52.4% from the field, which ranks them 8th in the nation.

The Zips are ranked 224th in the nation in points allowed per game with 74.8. They are forcing 14.0 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 41.6% from the floor (112th in D-1). The Akron defense gives up 32.6% on shots from beyond the perimeter (95 of 291) and their opponents are knocking down 74.4% of their shots from the charity stripe. They relinquish 14.4 assists and 33.0 boards per contest, which ranks them 253rd and 114th in D-1.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Murray State

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