Morehead State Eagles vs Western Illinois Leathernecks Prediction, 2/21/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Morehead State Eagles vs Western Illinois Leathernecks

Date: Saturday, February 21, 2026

Location: Western Hall in Macomb, IL

TV: ESPN+

The Western Illinois Leathernecks (5-22) will try to defeat the Morehead State Eagles (15-12) at Western Hall on Saturday.

The Morehead State Eagles faced Tennessee State and notched a win by a score of 94-86 in their last contest. When talking about fouls, the Eagles ended up walking away with 23 and Tennessee State totaled 25 fouls. They also buried 8 of 22 attempts from 3-point range. Tennessee State shot 88.9% from the charity stripe by knocking down 32 of 36 attempts. On top of that, Tennessee State had 26 boards (13 offensive, 13 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Tennessee State distributed 13 dimes and had 9 steals for the matchup. In the matter of the defense, Morehead State allowed their opponent to shoot 37.7% from the field on 23 of 61 shooting. They also dished out 12 assists for this game while creating 7 turnovers and getting 5 steals. In regard to pulling down rebounds, they compiled a total of 28 with 7 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Eagles made 22 of 28 shots for a rate of 78.6%. Morehead State finished the game with a 60.4% field goal percentage (32 of 53) and knocked down 8 of 18 shots from beyond the arc.

Josiah LeGree is one player who was a factor in this matchup. He notched 25 points on 7 out of 12 shooting. He was on the court for 26 minutes played and grabbed 3 rebounds. He finished shooting 58.3% from the floor and also earned 3 assists.

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Morehead State heads into this matchup with a mark of 15-12 so far this season. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.2 times per contest and as a team are committing 18.0 fouls per game. As a unit, Morehead State is pulling down 36.3 rebounds per contest and has 375 dimes for the season, which is 176th in D-1 in terms of passing. The Eagles are shooting 34.0% on three-point shots (165 of 486) and 73.4% from the charity stripe. They average 76.2 points per game (173rd in the nation) while connecting on 46.5% from the floor.

On defense, the Eagles have forced 11.3 turnovers every game while drawing 18.4 personal fouls. They are ranked 307th in college hoops in giving up assists with 407 conceded this season. The Eagles defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 43.7% (710 of 1,624) and they surrender 34.0 boards per game as a squad. They give up 34.8% on 3-point attempts and they rank 238th in college hoops in PPG allowed (75.9).

In their last game, the Western Illinois Leathernecks walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 77-58 when they faced Little Rock. The Leathernecks were able to corral 27 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive rebounds for a total of 32 for this game. They also turned it over 9 times, while recording 3 steals for the contest. Little Rock earned 18 fouls for this game which took the Leathernecks to the charity stripe for a total of 18 shots. They were able to bury 8 of the free throws for a clip of 44.4%. In reference to 3-pointers, Western Illinois buried 6 of 24 tries (25.0%). In all, the Leathernecks finished shooting 22 for 58 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 37.9%. The Leathernecks allowed Little Rock to bury 31 of 69 attempts from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.9% in this contest. They finished 42.1% from 3-point land by going 8 of 19 and walked away from this one shooting 7 out of 13 from the charity stripe (53.8%). In regard to cleaning the glass, Western Illinois permitted Little Rock to pull down 45 in all (12 offensive).

Lucas Lorenzen ended up having an impact for the Leathernecks in the game. He converted 7 of 11 for the matchup for a rate of 63.6%, and accounted for 3 rebounds. He scored 19 points in his 32 minutes on the hardwood and tallied 1 assist for the contest.

Western Illinois has a win-loss mark of 5-22 on the campaign. On the offensive side of the court, the Leathernecks are connecting on 40.1% from the field, which is 357th in the nation. Western Illinois has 1,766 points for the campaign (65.4 per contest) and they average 32.9 rebounds per game. They are assisting teammates 8.1 times per contest (365th in D-1) and they lose possession via turnover 11.7 times per contest. The Leathernecks are committing 16.3 personal fouls every game and they go 67.6% from the free throw line.

The Leathernecks on the defensive end are ranked 249th in D-1 in PPG given up with 76.5. They are forcing their opponents into 10.6 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 47.1% from the floor (326th in college). The Western Illinois defense surrenders 36.2% on shots from distance (212 of 585) and opponents are knocking down 71.0% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 13.9 dimes and 35.9 total boards per game, which has them ranked 230th and 270th in D-1.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Morehead State

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