Ball State Cardinals vs Toledo Rockets Prediction, 1/31/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Ball State Cardinals vs Toledo Rockets

Date: Saturday, January 31, 2026

Location: Savage Arena in Toledo, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Ball State Cardinals (7-13) are traveling to Savage Arena on Saturday where they will attempt to defeat the Toledo Rockets (11-10).

The Ball State Cardinals faced off with Northern Illinois and walked away with a win by a score of 58-53 in their last game. Ball State ended having earned a 44.7% field goal percentage (21 out of 47) and knocked down 5 out of their 18 three-point attempts. At the free throw line, the Cardinals made 11 of their 18 shots for a percentage of 61.1%. Concerning grabbing rebounds, they collected a total of 25 with 4 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 9 assists for the game as well as forcing the other team into 8 turnovers and having 5 steals. In the matter of defending, Ball State allowed their opponent to shoot 34.6% from the field on 18 of 52 shooting. Northern Illinois totaled 7 dimes and had 4 steals for the matchup. Furthermore, Northern Illinois collected 31 rebounds (9 offensive, 22 defensive), but didn't have a block. Northern Illinois finished shooting 76.5% at the charity stripe by converting 13 of 17 attempts. They made 4 out of their 28 attempts from 3-point land. When discussing personal fouls, the Cardinals ended up walking away with 16 and Northern Illinois had 19 personal fouls.

Armoni Zeigler is a guy who was a major contributor in this game. He finished the contest at 46.7% from the field but finished the game without an assist. He was on the hardwood for 35 minutes and snagged 3 boards. He accounted for 18 points on 7 out of 15 shooting.

Get all of our NCAA Picks Today

Ball State comes into this game with a win-loss mark of 7-13 so far this year. They average 67.9 pts per contest (333rd in Division 1) while connecting on 42.3% from the field. The Cardinals are connecting on 31.3% from downtown (140 of 448) and 69.9% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Ball State is grabbing 31.7 boards per game and has totaled 253 dimes so far this year, which has them ranked 314th in college hoops in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 10.5 times per game and as a squad they are committing 15.7 fouls per contest.

On the defensive end of the court, the Cardinals are able to force 13.2 turnovers per contest and they draw 16.0 personal fouls. They surrender 34.6% on shots from beyond the arc and they are 78th in college in PPG allowed (69.8). The Cardinals are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 45.2% (495 of 1,094) and they surrender 35.6 boards per contest as a group. They are 155th in college hoops in giving up assists with 272 relinquished for the campaign.

For their last game, the Toledo Rockets went home defeated by a final of 91-81 when they faced Akron. The Rockets corralled 17 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 24 in the matchup. They also gave up possession 15 times, while earning 9 steals for this contest. Akron had 13 fouls in this matchup which took the Rockets to the charity stripe for 13 tries. They were able to convert 10 of the free throws for a rate of 76.9%. With respect to 3-pointers, Toledo knocked down 11 of their 20 attempts (55.0%). In all, the Rockets shot 30 for 56 from the floor which gave them a rate of 53.6%. The Rockets permitted Akron to knock down 35 out of 68 tries from the field which left them with a rate of 51.5% for this contest. They finished 37.0% from distance by hitting 10 out of 27 and walked away from this one shooting 11 of 14 from the free throw line (78.6%). In the matter of how they attacked the glass, Toledo permitted Akron to grab 36 in total (16 on the offensive glass).

Sonny Wilson ended up having an impact for the Rockets in the matchup. He buried 7 out of 15 in the matchup for a field goal percentage of 46.7%, and had 5 rebounds. He racked up 22 points in his 39 mins on the court and added 8 dimes in this contest.

Toledo has a win-loss mark of 11-10 for the season. The Rockets have committed 15.0 personal fouls every game and they shoot 77.9% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 16.0 times per game (79th in the nation) and they turn the ball over 11.0 times per contest. Toledo has earned 1,726 points so far this season (82.2 per game) and they pull down 34.1 boards per game. As an offensive team, the Rockets are shooting 47.7% from the field, which ranks 60th in college hoops.

The Toledo defense gives up 35.2% on 3-point shots (181 of 514) and their opposition makes 68.7% of their free throw attempts. They relinquish 16.0 dimes and 35.1 boards per game, which has them ranked 329th and 216th in those defensive categories. The Rockets on the defensive side of the court are 307th in the nation in points given up per game with 78.9. They are forcing their opponents into 13.4 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 48.3% from the field (349th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Toledo

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Get college basketball picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.