Cincinnati Bearcats vs UCF Knights Prediction, 1/11/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Cincinnati Bearcats vs UCF Knights

Date: Sunday, January 11, 2026

Location: Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, FL

TV: ESPN2

The UCF Knights (12-2) will take on the Cincinnati Bearcats (8-7) at Addition Financial Arena on Sunday.

The Cincinnati Bearcats played West Virginia and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 62-60 in their last game. In relation to personal fouls, the Bearcats left the arena with 15 and West Virginia racked up 14 personal fouls. They also made 11 of 23 attempts from distance. West Virginia shot 53.8% from the charity stripe by burying 7 of their 13 attempts. On top of that, West Virginia had 34 rebounds (6 offensive, 28 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. West Virginia doled out 9 dimes and had 6 steals for the matchup. In regard to defending, Cincinnati allowed the other team to shoot 45.8% from the floor on 22 of 48 shooting. They also recorded 19 assists in this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 15 turnovers and getting 7 steals. When it comes to hauling in boards, they collected a total of 30 with 10 of them being on the offensive end. At the free throw line, the Bearcats knocked down 4 of their 9 attempts for a rate of 44.4%. Cincinnati finished the contest with a 35.5% FG percentage (22 of 62) and buried 12 of their 35 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Jalen Celestine is one player who was a factor for the game. He finished shooting 45.5% from the field but finished the game without an assist. He was on the court for 25 mins played and grabbed 5 rebounds. He totaled 15 points on 5 of 11 shooting.

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Cincinnati enters this game with a record of 8-7 on the campaign. They are averaging 73.7 points per contest (263rd in D-1) while hitting 42.2% from the field. The Bearcats are hitting 31.8% on three-point attempts (139 of 437) and 63.8% from the free throw line. As a team, Cincinnati is pulling in 39.0 boards per contest and has racked up 259 assists for the season, which is 69th in the country in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 12.9 times per contest and as a group are committing 16.5 fouls per contest.

On the defensive end of the court, the Bearcats are forcing their opponents into 14.6 turnovers per contest while drawing 17.6 fouls. They give up 31.3% on shots from downtown and they are 23rd in the nation in opponents PPG (65.3). The Bearcats defense is giving up a FG percentage of 39.6% (342 of 863) and they relinquish 35.2 rebounds per contest as a team. They are ranked 111th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 190 relinquished this season.

When they last stepped on the court, the UCF Knights took a loss by a score of 87-76 against Oklahoma State. When discussing how they cleaned up the glass, UCF allowed Oklahoma State to snag 39 in total (5 on the offensive side). They finished 52.6% from beyond the arc by going 10 of 19 and ended up going 27 of 35 from the free throw line (77.1%). The Knights allowed Oklahoma State to bury 25 of 53 tries from the floor which had them shooting 47.2% in the matchup. In all, the Knights ended up going 27 out of 72 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 37.5%. In regard to 3-point shots, UCF knocked down 7 out of 33 tries (21.2%). They were able to convert 15 of them for a rate of 65.2%. Oklahoma State committed 18 fouls in this contest which got the Knights to the charity stripe for a total of 23 attempts. They also coughed up the ball 11 times, while earning 8 steals for the game. The Knights corralled 21 defensive boards and 12 offensive rebounds totaling 33 for this contest.

Riley Kugel was important for the Knights for the game. He buried 6 of 14 for this game giving him a rate of 42.9%, and had 4 rebounds. He racked up 15 points in his 27 minutes on the court and accumulated 4 assists in this game.

UCF has a record of 12-2 this season. The Knights have committed 18.1 personal fouls per game and they shoot 72.9% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 16.6 times per game (71st in Division 1) and they lose possession via turnover 11.4 times per game. UCF has scored 1,217 points this year (86.9 per contest) and they average 40.3 boards per game. When it comes to executing on offense, the Knights are connecting on 48.2% from the floor, which is 64th in the nation.

The UCF defense surrenders 34.3% on shots from behind the 3-point line (122 of 356) and their opposition makes 76.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They give up 12.5 dimes and 31.7 rebounds on a nightly basis, ranking them 115th and 54th in the country. The Knights on the defensive end are ranked 246th in the nation in points per game surrendered with 75.8. They are forcing their opponents into 12.9 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 42.7% from the floor (144th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take UCF

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