Akron Zips vs Kent State Golden Flashes Prediction, 2/28/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Akron Zips vs Kent State Golden Flashes

Date: Saturday, February 28, 2026

Location: M.A.C. Center in Kent, OH

TV: ESPN+

M.A.C. Center is where the Kent State Golden Flashes (21-7) will try to defeat the Akron Zips (23-5) on Saturday.

The Akron Zips faced Buffalo and earned the victory with a final of 99-85 in their last contest. With respect to personal fouls, the Zips ended up with 21 while Buffalo totaled 20 personal fouls. They buried 9 of 33 attempts from distance. Buffalo finished the game shooting 78.8% from the free throw line by converting 26 of their 33 tries. On top of that, Buffalo snagged 33 rebounds (14 offensive, 19 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Buffalo doled out 11 dimes and had 9 steals for the contest. In the matter of defense, Akron let their opponent shoot 36.8% from the floor on 25 of 68 shooting. They also recorded 18 assists for this game as well as creating 14 turnovers and having 8 steals. In regard to rebounding, they compiled a total of 34 with 6 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Zips buried 26 of their 29 shots for a percentage of 89.7%. Akron wrapped up the game having earned a 55.2% FG percentage (32 of 58) and converted 9 out of their 21 three-point shots.

Tavari Johnson is one guy who came through in this game. He went 45.5% from the floor and also totaled 5 dimes. He played for 30 minutes played and pulled down 1 rebound. He ended up with 23 points on 5 of 11 shooting.

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Akron comes into this contest with a record of 23-5 on the year. They have an average of 89.8 points per contest (6th in the country) while hitting 50.4% from the field. The Zips are hitting 37.3% on shots from 3-point land (302 of 809) and 77.9% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Akron is grabbing 38.0 rebounds per game and is sitting with 532 assists this season, which is 9th in Division 1 in terms of passing. They are turning it over 10.9 times per contest and as a team they are committing 16.0 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end, the Zips have forced 13.8 turnovers every game while drawing 15.7 personal fouls. They are 157th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 375 conceded for the season. The Zips defensively are giving up a shooting percentage of 42.3% (728 of 1,721) and they concede 33.6 rebounds per game as a group. They are surrendering 35.0% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 215th in D-1 in PPG allowed (74.9).

In their last game, the Kent State Golden Flashes went home victorious with a score of 83-81 against Central Michigan. The Golden Flashes were able to snag 20 defensive boards and 10 offensive boards for a total of 30 in the matchup. They turned the ball over 13 times, while getting 7 steals for this game. Central Michigan had 22 fouls in the game which got the Golden Flashes to the charity stripe for a total of 28 shots. They were able to knock down 22 of those for a rate of 78.6%. In reference to shooting from 3-point land, Kent State made 9 of their 24 tries (37.5%). When the final whistle was blown, the Golden Flashes went 26 for 54 from the field which had them at 48.1%. The Golden Flashes allowed Central Michigan to convert 27 of 53 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 50.9% in this matchup. They finished shooting 48.0% from 3-point land by shooting 12 out of 25 and finished the contest at 15 of 22 at the charity stripe (68.2%). When talking about cleaning the glass, Kent State permitted Central Michigan to get 24 overall (8 on the offensive side).

Delrecco Gillespie ended up being a factor for the Golden Flashes in the game. He knocked down 6 out of 11 for the contest for a rate of 54.5%, and totaled 11 rebounds. He tallied 17 points in his 33 minutes on the court and had 4 assists in this contest.

Kent State has a mark of 21-7 this season. On the offensive side of the ball, the Golden Flashes are shooting 45.6% from the field, which ranks them 163rd in the country. Kent State has totaled 2,396 pts on the season (85.6 per contest) and they average 40.2 rebounds per game. They are earning an assist 16.3 times per contest (53rd in the nation) and they are turning it over 13.8 times per game. The Golden Flashes commit 19.5 personal fouls per contest while shooting 74.3% from the free throw line.

The Golden Flashes on defense are ranked 326th in D-1 in points given up per game with 79.7. They are forcing 12.2 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 43.5% from the floor (139th in the country). The Kent State defense surrenders 34.2% on shots from behind the 3-point line (253 of 739) and their opponents are connecting on 72.1% of their free throw attempts. They surrender 14.7 assists and 33.9 boards on a nightly basis, which has them ranked 277th and 145th in college hoops.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Akron

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