McNeese Cowboys vs Vanderbilt Commodores Prediction, 3/19/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: McNeese Cowboys vs Vanderbilt Commodores

Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026

Location: Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK

TV: truTV

Odds/Point Spread: Vanderbilt (-12)

Paycom Center is the site where the Vanderbilt Commodores (26-8) will meet the McNeese Cowboys (28-5) on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Vanderbilt opens this contest as 12-point favorites. The total comes in at 150.5.

The McNeese Cowboys took the court against Stephen F. Austin and earned the victory with a final of 76-59 in their last game. McNeese ended the game with a 51.9% field goal percentage (28 of 54) and made 9 out of their 18 three-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Cowboys converted 11 of their 12 attempts for a rate of 91.7%. When it comes to pulling down boards, they collected a total of 34 with 8 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 14 assists for this game as well as creating 10 turnovers and earning 9 steals. In the matter of the defense, McNeese allowed the other team to go 37.3% from the field on 19 of 51 shooting. Stephen F. Austin earned 10 dimes and had 5 steals in this contest. Furthermore, Stephen F. Austin had 24 rebounds (7 offensive, 17 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Stephen F. Austin finished the contest at 84.2% from the free throw line by burying 16 of their 19 shots. They converted 5 of their 21 shots from distance. When discussing personal fouls, the Cowboys walked away with 13 while Stephen F. Austin totaled 11 personal fouls.

Javohn Garcia is one player who was important for this contest. He left the arena with 31 points on 11 of 18 shooting. He saw the court for 33 mins played and also pulled down 5 boards. He shot 61.1% from the field but had no dimes when the game ended.

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McNeese enters this matchup with a mark of 28-5 on the campaign. They are averaging 80.0 points per game (83rd in college hoops) while going 46.8% from the field. The Cowboys are hitting 31.9% on shots from downtown (220 of 689) and 74.7% from the free throw line. As a unit, McNeese is pulling down 35.2 boards per contest and has 467 assists on the season, which is 148th in D-1 in terms of passing. They turn the ball over 9.6 times per contest and as a squad they are committing 18.7 personal fouls per game.

On the defensive end, the Cowboys are forcing their opponents into 16.9 turnovers every game and they draw 17.7 personal fouls. They rank 90th in college in allowing assists to the opposition with 399 surrendered on the season. The Cowboys defense is allowing a shooting percentage of 40.7% (708 of 1,741) and they surrender 33.8 boards per contest as a team. They are conceding 32.4% on 3-point shots and they are ranked 24th in college hoops in PPG allowed (66.5).

In their last game, the Vanderbilt Commodores took a loss by a score of 86-75 when they played Arkansas. The Commodores snagged 23 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 32 for the contest. They also turned it over 6 times, while recording 7 steals in this matchup. Arkansas had 13 personal fouls for this game which got the Commodores to the charity stripe for a total of 15 attempts. They were able to knock down 15 of the free throw tries for a rate of 100.0%. In reference to shots from 3-point land, Vanderbilt knocked down 10 of their 24 attempts (41.7%). In all, the Commodores finished the game shooting 25 for 66 from the field which gave them a percentage of 37.9%. The Commodores permitted Arkansas to convert 30 of their 58 tries from the field which had them sitting at 51.7% for this contest. They finished 62.5% from beyond the perimeter via 15 out of 24 and walked away from this one shooting 11 out of 15 from the charity stripe (73.3%). In regard to how they rebounded, Vanderbilt allowed Arkansas to pull down 32 in total (5 offensive).

Duke Miles was important for the Commodores for this contest. He had 19 points in his 36 minutes on the court and had 9 assists for the game. He buried 7 of 14 for this game giving him a rate of 50.0%, and tallied 4 rebounds.

Vanderbilt has a record of 26-8 on the campaign. The Commodores have committed 19.3 personal fouls per contest and they go 79.3% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 16.4 times per contest (46th in D-1) and they turn it over 9.5 times per game. Vanderbilt has tallied 2,936 pts for the year (86.4 per contest) and they collect 35.3 boards per contest. In terms of offensive execution, the Commodores are connecting on 47.5% from the field, which has them ranked 50th in the nation.

The Commodores on the defensive side of the court are 221st in college in PPG given up with 75.2. They are forcing 12.8 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 42.7% from the field (96th in college hoops). The Vanderbilt defense surrenders 32.2% on shots from 3-point land (243 of 755) and their opponents are connecting on 75.2% of their foul shots. They concede 11.6 assists and 35.0 boards every game, which has them ranked 48th and 222nd in those defensive categories.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Vanderbilt (-12)

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