Murray State Racers vs Southern Illinois Salukis Prediction, 2/6/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Murray State Racers vs Southern Illinois Salukis

Date: Friday, February 6, 2026

Location: Banterra Center in Carbondale, IL

TV: ESPN+

The Southern Illinois Salukis (10-13) will try to beat the Murray State Racers (17-7) at Banterra Center on Friday.

The Murray State Racers faced UIC and walked away with a win by a score of 81-74 in their last contest. With respect to fouls, the Racers ended up with 23 and UIC had 21 fouls. They converted 7 out of their 20 tries from beyond the arc. UIC finished the game at 58.6% at the charity stripe by converting 17 of their 29 shots. On top of that, UIC had 37 rebounds (12 offensive, 25 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. UIC earned 12 assists and had 7 steals in this matchup. With regard to defending, Murray State allowed the other team to go 40.3% from the floor on 25 out of 62 shooting. They also recorded 14 assists in the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 12 turnovers and having 9 steals. When it comes to hauling in rebounds, they compiled a total of 44 with 12 of them being of the offensive variety. At the charity stripe, the Racers knocked down 16 of their 22 shots for a rate of 72.7%. Murray State ended the contest with a 46.7% FG percentage (28 out of 60) and made 9 of 28 three-point attempts.

Roman Domon is a player who had an impact for this contest. He went 54.5% from the field and distributed 3 assists. He was on the hardwood for 37 mins played and also grabbed 8 boards. He ended up walking away with 18 points on 6 of 11 shooting.

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Murray State comes into this game with a win-loss mark of 17-7 on the year. They are averaging 86.1 points per contest (24th in college hoops) while going 47.0% from the floor. The Racers are shooting 34.9% on 3-point shots (233 of 667) and 76.6% from the charity stripe. As a team, Murray State is snagging 38.0 rebounds per game and has tallied 348 dimes on the year, which is 112th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. They turn it over 12.0 times per game and as a squad they are committing 19.0 personal fouls every game.

When they are on the defensive end, the Racers are forcing 11.7 turnovers per contest while drawing 20.3 fouls. They are relinquishing 35.6% on shots from downtown and they are 309th in college hoops in PPG allowed (79.0). The Racers defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 45.9% (700 of 1,524) and they surrender 35.3 boards per contest as a group. They are 124th in college in giving up assists to the opposition with 290 surrendered on the campaign.

In their last game, the Southern Illinois Salukis walked away with a victory by a final of 54-50 when they played Illinois State. In regard to cleaning the glass, Southern Illinois permitted Illinois State to collect 31 in all (7 on the offensive glass). They finished the game shooting 27.3% from three-point range by connecting on 6 of 22 and walked away from this one shooting 6 of 10 at the free throw line (60.0%). The Salukis allowed Illinois State to bury 19 of their 60 tries from the field which had them shooting 31.7% in this matchup. When the final whistle was blown, the Salukis shot 21 out of 52 from the floor which had them at 40.4%. When it comes to shots from 3-point land, Southern Illinois knocked down 1 out of their 11 tries (9.1%). They were able to knock down 11 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 73.3%. Illinois State committed 16 fouls in the matchup which got the Salukis to the free throw line for a total of 15 shots. They also coughed up the ball 15 times, while earning 7 steals for this contest. The Salukis collected 33 defensive boards and 5 offensive rebounds totaling 38 in this game.

Quel'Ron House ended up being important for the Salukis in the matchup. He earned 22 points in his 40 minutes on the court and totaled 2 dimes in the game. He converted 9 of 16 in the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 56.3%, and accumulated 4 rebounds.

Southern Illinois has a win-loss mark of 10-13 on the season. The Salukis are committing 18.6 fouls every game and they connect on 66.3% from the charity stripe. Their rate of earning assists is at 13.8 times per contest (207th in college hoops) and they are giving up possession 12.7 times per game. Southern Illinois has totaled 1,694 points for the season (73.7 per contest) and they average 38.0 boards per game. As an offensive unit, the Salukis are connecting on 46.0% from the field, which has them ranked 141st in college.

The Southern Illinois defense gives up 29.9% on three-point shots (164 of 548) and their opponents are converting on 69.1% of their foul shots. They have allowed 13.2 assists and 36.0 boards every game, which has them ranked 169th and 270th in those categories. The Salukis on the defensive end are ranked 106th in D-1 in PPG allowed with 71.0. They are forcing 13.3 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 41.9% from the floor (75th in Division 1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Southern Illinois

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