Belmont Bruins vs Southern Illinois Salukis Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Belmont Bruins vs Southern Illinois Salukis

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: Banterra Center in Carbondale, IL

TV: ESPN+

Banterra Center is the location where the Southern Illinois Salukis (8-10) will attempt to defeat the Belmont Bruins (16-3) on Saturday.

The Belmont Bruins played Valparaiso and went home with a win by a final score of 78-74 in their last game. Belmont walked away from the contest having earned a 56.1% FG percentage (32 of 57) and buried 8 out of their 20 3-point attempts. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Bruins converted 6 of 6 shots for a rate of 100.0%. Regarding rebounding, they collected a total of 24 with 4 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 17 assists for the game while forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and having 3 steals. In reference to defending, Belmont allowed the other team to shoot 43.5% from the field on 27 of 62 shooting. Valparaiso recorded 16 dimes and had 5 steals in this matchup. Additionally, Valparaiso collected 27 rebounds (10 offensive, 17 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Valparaiso finished shooting 53.3% from the free throw line by converting 8 of 15 shots. They also knocked down 12 of 31 tries from beyond the arc. When talking about fouls, the Bruins walked away with 15 while Valparaiso finished the game with 11 fouls.

Jabez Jenkins is someone who was a contributor for the matchup. He racked up 17 points on 8 out of 12 shooting. He was on the court for 35 mins and also snagged 4 rebounds. He finished 66.7% from the field and earned 3 assists.

Get all of our NCAA Picks Tonight

Belmont steps onto the court with a mark of 16-3 on the campaign. They are averaging 83.1 points per game (76th in the country) while shooting 51.3% from the field. The Bruins are hitting 39.4% on 3-pointers (194 of 493) and 67.7% from the charity stripe. As a team, Belmont is pulling down 38.4 rebounds per game and is sitting with 342 dimes for the year, which ranks 12th in college hoops in terms of passing. They turn the ball over 13.4 times per game and as a squad they are committing 17.0 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on defense, the Bruins are able to force 13.1 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.6 fouls. They give up 32.6% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are ranked 91st in D-1 in PPG from their opponents (69.9). The Bruins are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 38.5% (452 of 1,175) and they surrender 33.6 boards per contest as a unit. They rank 224th in college hoops in giving up assists with 241 surrendered on the season.

In their last game, the Southern Illinois Salukis took a loss by a final score of 76-73 when they played Drake. Concerning rebounding, Southern Illinois allowed Drake to pull down 41 overall (7 on the offensive glass). They finished 23.5% from 3-point land by shooting 8 out of 34 and walked away from this one shooting 18 of 25 at the free throw line (72.0%). The Salukis allowed Drake to convert 25 of 62 tries from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 40.3% in this matchup. When this game wrapped up, the Salukis ended up going 27 for 75 from the field which gave them a percentage of 36.0%. With respect to shots from beyond the arc, Southern Illinois knocked down 3 of their 26 attempts (11.5%). They were able to bury 16 of those for a clip of 66.7%. Drake was called for 19 fouls for the contest which took the Salukis to the free throw line for a total of 24 attempts. They also turned the ball over 8 times, while earning 10 steals in the game. The Salukis were able to collect 30 defensive rebounds and 14 offensive boards totaling 44 for the contest.

Damien Mayo Jr. pitched in for the Salukis in the game. He racked up 17 points in his 33 minutes on the court and accumulated 5 assists in the game. He knocked down 8 of 14 for the matchup giving him a rate of 57.1%, and accumulated 1 rebound.

Southern Illinois has a win-loss mark of 8-10 so far this year. As an offensive unit, the Salukis are hitting on 47.1% from the field, which ranks 96th in college hoops. Southern Illinois has 1,378 pts on the season (76.6 per game) and they grab 38.9 boards per contest. They are dishing out assists 14.1 times per contest (202nd in Division 1) and they are turning it over 12.9 times per contest. The Salukis are committing 18.8 personal fouls every game and they connect on 66.1% from the free throw line.

The Salukis defensively are ranked 186th in college hoops in PPG given up with 73.5. They are forcing 13.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 42.3% from the field (116th in college). The Southern Illinois defense concedes 31.0% on three-point shots (139 of 448) and their opponents are converting on 69.0% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have conceded 14.0 dimes and 35.9 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 235th and 267th in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Belmont

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.