Lindenwood Lions vs Western Illinois Leathernecks Prediction, 2/28/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Lindenwood Lions vs Western Illinois Leathernecks

Date: Saturday, February 28, 2026

Location: Western Hall in Macomb, IL

TV: ESPN+

Western Hall is the site where the Western Illinois Leathernecks (5-25) will go up against the Lindenwood Lions (16-14) on Saturday.

The Lindenwood Lions faced Eastern Illinois and took a loss by a score of 71-67 in their last contest. Regarding personal fouls, the Lions ended up with 21 and Eastern Illinois totaled 14 personal fouls. They also buried 6 of their 9 shots from downtown. Eastern Illinois went 75.8% from the charity stripe by burying 25 of 33 tries. Moreover, Eastern Illinois collected 28 rebounds (7 offensive, 21 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Eastern Illinois earned 12 dimes and had 12 steals for the game. Concerning defense, Lindenwood allowed the other team to shoot 40.8% from the field on 20 of 49 shooting. They also doled out 11 dimes for the contest while forcing the opposition into 12 turnovers and having 9 steals. With regard to grabbing rebounds, they collected 39 with 17 of them being on the offensive end. At the free throw line, the Lions converted 10 of their 14 shots for a rate of 71.4%. Lindenwood finished the contest having earned a 37.9% FG percentage (25 of 66) and converted 7 out of their 24 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Anias Futrell is one player who was important for this contest. He shot 52.9% from the field and also totaled 1 assist. He was on the court for 39 mins and pulled down 5 boards. He recorded 27 points on 9 out of 17 shooting.

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Lindenwood comes into this matchup with a record of 16-14 for the campaign. They are giving up possession 13.9 times per contest and as a squad are committing 17.1 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Lindenwood is snagging 38.7 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 445 assists for the year, which is 89th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Lions are connecting on 31.2% on shots beyond the perimeter (181 of 581) and 68.5% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 77.9 pts per game (139th in the country) on 45.9% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Lions are forcing 14.3 turnovers every game and they draw 17.4 personal fouls. They rank 146th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 373 conceded this season. The Lions defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 42.7% (784 of 1,838) and they surrender 36.7 boards per game as a unit. They surrender 30.8% on 3-point shots while they are 168th in college hoops in PPG allowed (73.3).

For their last game, the Western Illinois Leathernecks took a loss by a score of 67-47 against SIU Edwardsville. When discussing rebounding, Western Illinois allowed SIU Edwardsville to grab 41 overall (5 on the offensive side). They shot 18.8% from beyond the perimeter by going 3 out of 16 and ended up shooting 10 out of 14 at the charity stripe (71.4%). The Leathernecks allowed SIU Edwardsville to knock down 27 of 55 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 49.1% in the game. Overall, the Leathernecks finished shooting 15 for 52 from the field which had them at 28.8%. In relation to 3-point shots, Western Illinois converted 7 of 20 tries (35.0%). They were able to knock down 10 of the free throw tries for a rate of 43.5%. SIU Edwardsville committed 16 fouls for this game which took the Leathernecks to the free throw line for a total of 23 attempts. They also coughed up the ball 11 times, while getting 6 steals in the game. The Leathernecks were able to collect 23 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 30 in this game.

Isaiah Griffin ended up having an impact for the Leathernecks in the game. He converted 3 of 6 in this game for a field goal rate of 50.0%, and earned 1 rebound. He scored 13 points in his 28 mins of playing time, but left the arena with no assists.

Western Illinois has a record of 5-25 on the campaign. On the offensive side of the court, the Leathernecks are shooting 40.3% from the field, which has them ranked 356th in college. Western Illinois has scored 1,942 points for the season (64.7 per game) and they collect 32.0 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 8.3 times per contest (365th in the country) and they lose possession via turnover 11.8 times per game. The Leathernecks are committing 16.1 personal fouls every game and they hit 66.5% from the free throw line.

The Leathernecks on the defensive end are ranked 249th in the country in PPG given up with 76.3. They have forced 10.5 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 47.3% from the floor (331st in the nation). The Western Illinois defense gives up 35.2% on 3-point attempts (223 of 634) and opponents are making 70.5% of their shots from the free throw line. They allow 13.9 assists and 36.2 total boards per game, which has them ranked 222nd and 291st in the nation.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Lindenwood

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