Jacksonville Dolphins vs North Alabama Lions Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Jacksonville Dolphins vs North Alabama Lions

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: Flowers Hall in Florence, AL

TV: ESPN+

The North Alabama Lions (6-9) are hosting the Jacksonville Dolphins (6-11) at Flowers Hall on Saturday.

The Jacksonville Dolphins played West Georgia and earned the victory with a final of 75-43 in their last contest. When discussing personal fouls, the Dolphins ended up with 17 and West Georgia had 12 personal fouls. They knocked down 1 of 11 shots from beyond the perimeter. West Georgia walked away from this one shooting 63.6% from the charity stripe by converting 14 of 22 tries. In addition, West Georgia snagged 25 boards (5 offensive, 20 defensive), but didn't notch a block. West Georgia distributed 4 dimes and had 3 steals in this contest. In the matter of defense, Jacksonville let their opponent shoot 35.9% from the field on 14 of 39 shooting. They also recorded 12 assists in the matchup while forcing the other team into 15 turnovers and earning 10 steals. With respect to pulling down boards, they earned 24 with 3 of them being of the offensive sort. From the free throw line, the Dolphins knocked down 12 of 15 attempts for a rate of 80.0%. Jacksonville wrapped up the game with a 54.0% field goal percentage (27 of 50) and knocked down 9 of their 15 shots from 3-point land.

Chris Lockett is a guy who was a factor in the matchup. He shot 85.7% from the floor and also distributed 1 assist. He played for 23 mins played and pulled down 1 board. He finished with 18 points on 6 out of 7 shooting.

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Jacksonville comes into this game with a record of 6-11 on the season. They average 72.9 points per contest (279th in the country) while hitting 45.2% from the field. The Dolphins are connecting on 33.5% on shots beyond the perimeter (141 of 421) and 66.0% from the charity stripe. As a team, Jacksonville is pulling down 34.5 boards per contest and has 222 dimes on the campaign, which is 277th in college in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.8 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 18.6 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end, the Dolphins are forcing their opponents into 11.5 turnovers every game while drawing 15.5 personal fouls. They are ranked 164th in college in allowing assists to their opponents with 225 conceded this season. The Dolphins are giving up a field goal percentage of 46.0% (428 of 930) and they concede 31.6 rebounds per game as a group. They are giving up 34.2% on 3-point attempts and they are 187th in the country in PPG allowed (73.6).

When they last played, the North Alabama Lions got the victory with a final of 82-73 when they played Bellarmine. The Lions corralled 21 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds totaling 31 for the matchup. They gave up possession 9 times, while getting 6 steals in this contest. Bellarmine committed 17 personal fouls in this game which got the Lions to the free throw line for 22 tries. They were able to convert 17 of them for a rate of 77.3%. With respect to three-point shots, North Alabama made 11 of their 21 attempts (52.4%). When this game wrapped up, the Lions walked away from this one shooting 27 out of 50 from the field which gave them a rate of 54.0%. The Lions permitted Bellarmine to make 27 of their 52 attempts from the field which left them shooting 51.9% for the contest. They finished shooting 39.3% from behind the 3-point line via 11 out of 28 and ended up shooting 8 of 13 from the free throw line (61.5%). When talking about how they cleaned up the glass, North Alabama permitted Bellarmine to snag 19 in total (5 offensive).

Dallas Howell ended up being a major contributor for the Lions in the game. He buried 8 of 9 for the contest for a rate of 88.9%, and earned 3 rebounds. He tallied 24 points in his 33 minutes on the court, but finished this game without an assist.

North Alabama has a record of 6-9 for the season. The Lions have committed 15.3 personal fouls per contest and they hit 68.4% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 10.5 times per contest (359th in Division 1) and they turn it over 10.6 times per game. North Alabama has totaled 1,062 points on the campaign (70.8 per contest) and they collect 34.9 rebounds per game. As an offensive unit, the Lions are hitting on 42.7% from the field, which ranks them 303rd in Division 1.

The North Alabama defense surrenders 35.6% on 3-point attempts (143 of 402) and their opposition makes 71.9% of their shots from the free throw line. They concede 16.1 dimes and 35.7 boards per contest, which has them ranked 330th and 245th in college hoops. The Lions defensively are ranked 242nd in Division 1 in PPG given up with 75.6. They are forcing 10.1 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 45.1% from the field (265th in college).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Jacksonville

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