Akron Zips vs Bowling Green Falcons Prediction, 1/9/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Akron Zips vs Bowling Green Falcons

Date: Friday, January 9, 2026

Location: Stroh Center in Bowling Green, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Bowling Green Falcons (11-5) will try to defeat the Akron Zips (11-4) at Stroh Center on Friday.

The Akron Zips faced Central Michigan and notched a win by a score of 82-69 in their last contest. In the matter of fouls, the Zips ended up finishing with 19 while Central Michigan finished the game with 12 fouls. They also buried 5 out of their 17 shots from three-point range. Central Michigan went 81.5% when shooting free throws by knocking down 22 of 27 attempts. On top of that, Central Michigan totaled 18 boards (5 offensive, 13 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Central Michigan totaled 12 assists and had 10 steals for this contest. With regard to defending, Akron allowed their opponent to shoot 44.7% from the floor on 21 out of 47 shooting. They also recorded 22 assists for this game as well as forcing the other team into 15 turnovers and earning 12 steals. In reference to pulling down boards, they collected 32 with 10 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Zips knocked down 6 of their 9 attempts for a rate of 66.7%. Akron ended the contest with a 56.9% field goal percentage (33 of 58) and made 10 out of their 25 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Tavari Johnson is someone who was a contributor in the game. He finished the game at 75.0% from the floor and also recorded 10 assists. He was on the court for 35 mins played and also grabbed 5 rebounds. He walked away with 22 points on 9 of 12 shooting.

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Akron heads into this contest with a win-loss mark of 11-4 this year. They turn the ball over 10.7 times per game and as a unit are committing 16.3 fouls every game. As a team, Akron is pulling in 38.5 boards per game and has earned 310 dimes for the campaign, which has them ranked 12th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Zips are connecting on 37.6% on shots from 3-point land (158 of 420) and 75.7% from the free throw line. They are averaging 94.5 points per outing (5th in Division 1) while shooting 52.8% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Zips are able to force 14.7 turnovers per game while drawing 15.2 personal fouls. They are relinquishing 34.3% from beyond the arc and they are 252nd in Division 1 in PPG allowed (76.3). The Zips defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 42.0% (392 of 933) and they concede 33.0 boards per game as a squad. They rank 226th in the country in giving up assists to their opponents with 214 surrendered on the campaign.

For their last game, the Bowling Green Falcons took a defeat with a final score of 96-93 against Kent State. The Falcons earned 16 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive rebounds totaling 24 for the contest. They also gave up possession of the ball 8 times, while getting 6 steals in this matchup. Kent State earned 22 personal fouls for this contest which got the Falcons to the charity stripe for a total of 31 attempts. They were able to convert 27 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 87.1%. In the matter of three-point shots, Bowling Green made 8 out of their 20 attempts (40.0%). Overall, the Falcons finished 29 out of 57 from the field which gave them a rate of 50.9%. The Falcons permitted Kent State to convert 34 out of 63 tries from the floor which had them at 54.0% in the game. They shot 44.0% from three-point range by connecting on 11 out of 25 and ended up going 17 of 19 from the free throw line (89.5%). When talking about cleaning the glass, Bowling Green permitted Kent State to pull down 22 in total (8 on the offensive side).

Javontae Campbell ended up having an impact for the Falcons for this game. He earned 28 points in his 40 mins on the hardwood and had 9 assists in the matchup. He knocked down 8 out of 15 in this matchup for a rate of 53.3%, and accumulated 6 rebounds.

Bowling Green has a win-loss record of 11-5 so far this year. When it comes to offense, the Falcons are hitting on 49.9% from the field, which is ranked 26th in Division 1. Bowling Green has scored 1,429 pts on the campaign (89.3 per contest) and they grab 36.2 boards per contest. They are assisting teammates 16.4 times per game (75th in college) and they are turning it over 11.6 times per game. The Falcons are responsible for committing 18.5 fouls per contest and they shoot 74.8% from the free throw line.

The Bowling Green defense allows 34.0% on shots from beyond the perimeter (128 of 377) and opponents are connecting on 72.7% of their foul shots. They give up 13.3 assists and 31.9 total boards per game, which is 179th and 58th in college. The Falcons on the defensive side of the court are 105th in D-1 in points allowed per game with 70.4. They have forced 18.5 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 43.1% from the field (158th in Division 1).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Bowling Green

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