Morehead State Eagles vs Eastern Illinois Panthers Prediction, 2/19/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Morehead State Eagles vs Eastern Illinois Panthers

Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026

Location: Groniger Arena in Charleston, IL

TV: ESPN+

Groniger Arena is the site where the Eastern Illinois Panthers (11-16) will try to defeat the Morehead State Eagles (15-12) on Thursday.

The Morehead State Eagles played Tennessee State and went home with a win by a final score of 94-86 in their last contest. Morehead State walked away from the contest having earned a 60.4% field goal percentage (32 out of 53) and knocked down 8 of 18 shots from beyond the arc. At the free throw line, the Eagles knocked down 22 of their 28 tries for a rate of 78.6%. Pertaining to grabbing rebounds, they earned a total of 28 with 7 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 12 assists in the matchup as well as forcing the other team into 7 turnovers and earning 5 steals. With respect to the defense, Morehead State allowed 37.7% from the floor on 23 of 61 shooting. Tennessee State distributed 13 dimes and had 9 steals for the game. Additionally, Tennessee State totaled 26 rebounds (13 offensive, 13 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Tennessee State walked away from this one shooting 88.9% from the charity stripe by knocking down 32 of 36 shots. They also made 8 out of their 22 tries from distance. When talking about fouls, the Eagles finished with 23 while Tennessee State totaled 25 fouls.

Josiah LeGree is a guy who was important in the game. He finished the game at 58.3% from the field and also distributed 3 assists. He played 26 mins played and pulled down 3 rebounds. He ended up walking away with 25 points on 7 of 12 shooting.

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Morehead State comes into this matchup with a record of 15-12 on the campaign. They lose possession via turnover 12.2 times per contest and as a unit they commit 18.0 fouls every game. As a team, Morehead State is grabbing 36.3 rebounds per game and has totaled 375 assists so far this year, which has them ranked 162nd in the nation in terms of passing. The Eagles are shooting 34.0% on 3-point shots (165 of 486) and 73.4% from the free throw line. They are averaging 76.2 points per outing (173rd in Division 1) while hitting 46.5% from the field.

Defensively, the Eagles are able to force 11.3 turnovers every game and they draw 18.4 fouls. They are currently ranked 316th in college in giving up assists with 407 relinquished this season. The Eagles are allowing a FG percentage of 43.7% (710 of 1,624) and they relinquish 34.0 rebounds per contest as a unit. They are giving up 34.8% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 240th in college in PPG from their opponents (75.9).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Eastern Illinois Panthers got the victory with a final of 78-72 against Little Rock. When it comes to how they rebounded, Eastern Illinois permitted Little Rock to pull down 29 in total (10 on the offensive glass). They went 38.9% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 7 of 18 and walked away from this one shooting 11 out of 18 from the free throw line (61.1%). The Panthers permitted Little Rock to make 27 of their 60 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 45.0% in this matchup. At the conclusion of this game, the Panthers shot 25 out of 64 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 39.1%. In reference to shooting from distance, Eastern Illinois converted 6 of their 16 attempts (37.5%). They were able to knock down 22 of them for a rate of 73.3%. Little Rock was called for 20 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Panthers to the charity stripe for a total of 30 attempts. They turned it over 8 times, while recording 7 steals in this contest. The Panthers were able to collect 19 defensive boards and 18 offensive rebounds totaling 37 in this contest.

Meechie White ended up being a factor for the Panthers for the matchup. He earned 19 points in his 32 minutes on the hardwood and had 3 dimes in this contest. He knocked down 5 out of 12 in this game for a rate of 41.7%, and totaled 2 rebounds.

Eastern Illinois has a mark of 11-16 this year. When it comes to offense, the Panthers are connecting on 42.7% from the field, which is ranked 309th in the nation. Eastern Illinois has scored 1,815 points on the campaign (67.2 per contest) and they average 32.9 boards per contest. They are assisting teammates 12.4 times per game (298th in the nation) and they are losing possession via turnover 12.8 times per contest. The Panthers commit 16.6 fouls per game and they shoot 73.3% from the free throw line.

The Eastern Illinois defense gives up 30.0% on three-point shots (193 of 643) and their opponents are making 74.2% of their foul shots. They relinquish 13.9 assists and 35.3 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 223rd and 235th in the nation. The Panthers on the defensive side of the court are 85th in college in points per game surrendered with 70.3. They are forcing 13.6 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 43.2% from the field (128th in D-1).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Eastern Illinois and under the total points

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