Ball State Cardinals vs Ohio Bobcats Prediction, 2/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Ball State Cardinals vs Ohio Bobcats

Date: Tuesday, February 17, 2026

Location: Convocation Center in Athens, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Ball State Cardinals (8-17) are headed to Convocation Center on Tuesday where they will go up against the Ohio Bobcats (13-13).

The Ball State Cardinals played Kent State and took a loss by a score of 75-68 in their last contest. Ball State ended with a 33.9% FG percentage (19 of 56) and buried 8 out of their 24 shots from downtown. From the free throw line, the Cardinals knocked down 22 of their 30 attempts for a percentage of 73.3%. When discussing hauling in rebounds, they earned 28 with 6 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 15 assists for the game as well as forcing the other team into 15 turnovers and earning 10 steals. In the matter of the defense, Ball State let their opponent shoot 43.9% from the floor on 25 of 57 shooting. Kent State doled out 15 dimes and had 9 steals for the contest. Additionally, Kent State collected 40 boards (9 offensive, 31 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Kent State finished shooting 69.6% at the charity stripe by making 16 of their 23 tries. They knocked down 9 of their 26 tries from beyond the arc. Regarding fouls, the Cardinals walked away with 15 while Kent State totaled 21 fouls.

Davion Hill is a guy who was a factor for the contest. He shot 28.6% from the floor and also dished out 3 dimes. He was on the hardwood for 34 mins and grabbed 8 boards. He was able to score 17 points on 4 of 14 shooting.

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Ball State will take the court with a win-loss mark of 8-17 on the year. They are turning it over 10.8 times per game and as a team are committing 15.6 fouls every game. As a team, Ball State is collecting 31.5 rebounds per game and has totaled 304 assists so far this year, which ranks 326th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Cardinals are shooting 30.5% on shots from distance (169 of 554) and 69.8% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 66.4 pts per game (347th in Division 1) while hitting 41.3% from the floor.

Defensively, the Cardinals are able to force 13.1 turnovers per game while drawing 16.0 fouls. They surrender 34.1% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 81st in college hoops in opponents PPG (70.0). The Cardinals are giving up a shooting percentage of 45.4% (613 of 1,351) and they surrender 35.7 rebounds per contest as a team. They rank 136th in the country in giving up assists with 332 surrendered on the campaign.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Ohio Bobcats took a loss by a score of 90-74 against Miami. In regard to rebounding, Ohio permitted Miami to snag 34 overall (6 offensive). They finished the game shooting 50.0% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 9 out of 18 and ended up going 21 of 28 from the free throw line (75.0%). The Bobcats permitted Miami to knock down 30 out of 58 attempts from the floor which left them with a rate of 51.7% in this matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Bobcats went 28 for 60 from the field which had them sitting at 46.7%. Pertaining to 3-point shots, Ohio buried 5 out of 21 tries (23.8%). They were able to bury 13 of them for a rate of 65.0%. Miami had 16 fouls for the matchup which got the Bobcats to the charity stripe for 20 attempts. They turned it over 9 times, while recording 4 steals in this matchup. The Bobcats were able to pull down 20 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds totaling 27 in this matchup.

Jackson Paveletzke ended up being a major contributor for the Bobcats for this contest. He knocked down 7 out of 16 for this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 43.8%, and had 4 rebounds. He totaled 22 points in his 37 mins on the court and had 3 dimes for this game.

Ohio has a win-loss mark of 13-13 on the year. When it comes to executing on offense, the Bobcats are shooting 46.7% from the field, which is 98th in the nation. Ohio has scored 2,017 points on the season (77.6 per game) and they average 33.7 boards per game. They are earning an assist 13.5 times per game (216th in the country) and they are turning it over 11.5 times per contest. The Bobcats are responsible for committing 18.0 personal fouls per game while shooting 69.7% from the free throw line.

The Bobcats on defense are ranked 288th in the country in PPG given up with 77.8. They are able to force 12.5 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 45.7% from the field (275th in college). The Ohio defense allows 36.4% on 3-point attempts (195 of 536) and their opponents are knocking down 72.9% of their free throw attempts. They have relinquished 13.3 assists and 35.8 rebounds every game, which has them ranked 178th and 265th in college hoops.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Ball State

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