Columbia Lions vs Brown Bears Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Columbia Lions vs Brown Bears

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: Pizzitola Sports Center in Providence, RI

TV: ESPN+

Pizzitola Sports Center is where the Brown Bears (6-9) will play the Columbia Lions (12-4) on Saturday.

The Columbia Lions took the court against Harvard and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 79-54 in their last contest. Columbia finished with a 37.5% field goal percentage (21 of 56) and converted 2 out of their 16 shots from distance. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Lions converted 10 of 11 attempts for a rate of 90.9%. When it comes to pulling down rebounds, they compiled 25 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 8 assists in the game while forcing 9 turnovers and getting 6 steals. In reference to defense, Columbia let their opponent shoot 52.7% from the floor on 29 out of 55 shooting. Harvard recorded 18 assists and had 13 steals in the matchup. On top of that, Harvard snagged 31 rebounds (9 offensive, 22 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Harvard finished the game shooting 100.0% from the charity stripe by making 11 of their 11 shots. They also made 10 of their 21 tries from beyond the arc. Concerning fouls, the Lions ended up finishing with 10 and Harvard totaled 13 fouls.

Kenny Noland is a player who was a contributor for the game. He left the arena with 10 points on 4 of 14 shooting. He played 32 mins and also snagged 5 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 28.6% from the field and dished out 2 dimes.

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Columbia will enter this game with a record of 12-4 for the year. They are turning it over 13.8 times per game and as a squad they commit 16.4 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Columbia is pulling down 42.6 rebounds per game and has accounted for 273 dimes for the year, which is 105th in college in terms of passing the ball. The Lions are connecting on 36.9% on shots from distance (132 of 358) and 73.5% from the free throw line. They have an average of 81.0 points per outing (102nd in Division 1) while connecting on 49.2% from the field.

On defense, the Lions are forcing 10.0 turnovers per contest while drawing 15.8 personal fouls. They are ranked 172nd in the nation in giving up assists to their opponents with 226 conceded so far this year. The Lions are allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 40.8% (396 of 970) and they relinquish 29.8 boards per contest as a team. They are conceding 32.8% on 3-point attempts while they are 90th in college in PPG from their opponents (69.9).

In their last game, the Brown Bears took a loss by a score of 81-73 when they played Penn. The Bears were able to corral 19 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive rebounds totaling 26 in this contest. They also turned the ball over 10 times, while getting 6 steals for the contest. Penn was called for 14 fouls in this matchup which took the Bears to the charity stripe for a total of 12 tries. They were able to bury 8 of them for a percentage of 66.7%. With regard to shots from distance, Brown made 7 out of 20 attempts (35.0%). When the game finished, the Bears finished 29 for 60 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 48.3%. The Bears allowed Penn to knock down 26 of their 56 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 46.4% for the matchup. They went 43.8% from downtown by shooting 7 out of 16 and finished the game at 22 of 29 at the charity stripe (75.9%). When it comes to rebounds, Brown permitted Penn to grab 31 in all (10 on the offensive glass).

N'famara Dabo ended up being a factor for the Bears in this game. He accumulated 17 points in his 30 mins on the court, but wrapped up this contest with no dimes. He buried 7 of 8 in this contest giving him a rate of 87.5%, and accounted for 7 rebounds.

Brown has a mark of 6-9 on the season. In terms of offensive execution, the Bears are shooting 43.9% from the field, which is 264th in the country. Brown has accumulated 1,081 points on the season (72.1 per game) and they grab 37.0 boards per contest. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 15.7 times per contest (98th in D-1) and they turn it over 12.3 times per game. The Bears have committed 17.1 personal fouls per game while shooting 68.2% from the free throw line.

The Bears on the defensive end are ranked 21st in college in points allowed per contest with 65.5. They are forcing 14.1 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 41.4% from the field (70th in college). The Brown defense concedes 29.4% on shots from 3-point land (95 of 323) and opponents are connecting on 73.7% of their free throw attempts. They have given up 12.4 assists and 34.9 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 99th and 205th in the nation.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Brown

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