Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs Pittsburgh Panthers Prediction, 2/21/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs Pittsburgh Panthers

Date: Saturday, February 21, 2026

Location: Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: ACC Network

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-14) are headed to Petersen Events Center on Saturday where they will attempt to defeat the Pittsburgh Panthers (9-17).

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish faced Georgia Tech and took home the win by a score of 89-74 in their last game. Notre Dame finished the game with a 49.2% field goal percentage (29 out of 59) and buried 14 of 28 shots from 3-point land. At the free throw line, the Fighting Irish made 17 of their 19 attempts for a rate of 89.5%. In terms of hauling in boards, they compiled 33 with 11 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 14 assists in the matchup in addition to forcing 15 turnovers and earning 5 steals. In reference to the defense, Notre Dame allowed their opponent to shoot 47.2% from the floor on 25 out of 53 shooting. Georgia Tech earned 12 assists and had 7 steals in the game. In addition, Georgia Tech grabbed 21 rebounds (4 offensive, 17 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Georgia Tech finished the game shooting 92.9% when shooting free throws by making 13 of their 14 attempts. They buried 11 of 30 shots from distance. With respect to personal fouls, the Fighting Irish ended up with 14 and Georgia Tech finished the game with 18 personal fouls.

Cole Certa is one guy who was a contributor in this contest. He ended up going 60.0% from the field but wasn't able to get an assist. He was on the hardwood for 40 minutes and snagged 3 boards. He accounted for 37 points on 12 of 20 shooting.

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Notre Dame heads into this game with a record of 12-14 on the year. They are turning it over 11.6 times per game and as a unit they commit 17.3 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, Notre Dame is pulling in 37.0 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 321 dimes on the season, which ranks 310th in the country in terms of passing the ball. The Fighting Irish are shooting 36.3% from downtown (231 of 637) and 69.2% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 74.7 points per outing (227th in Division 1) while going 45.1% from the floor.

On defense, the Fighting Irish are able to force 9.7 turnovers every game and they draw 18.0 fouls. They currently rank 205th in D-1 in giving up assists with 361 surrendered for the season. The Fighting Irish defense is allowing a shooting percentage of 43.5% (652 of 1,499) and they concede 32.8 boards per contest as a unit. They are surrendering 32.7% on 3-pointers and they are 168th in college hoops in PPG from their opponents (73.4).

In their last game, the Pittsburgh Panthers went home defeated by a final of 79-65 when they faced North Carolina. The Panthers were able to collect 23 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive boards for a total of 29 in the matchup. They coughed it up 11 times, while getting 3 steals in this matchup. North Carolina committed 9 personal fouls for this contest which got the Panthers to the charity stripe for a total of 8 attempts. They were able to bury 6 of the free throw tries for a clip of 75.0%. Regarding 3-point shots, Pittsburgh knocked down 7 of 19 attempts (36.8%). Overall, the Panthers shot 26 for 55 from the field which gave them a percentage of 47.3%. The Panthers allowed North Carolina to convert 28 out of 60 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 46.7% in this contest. They went 36.0% from behind the 3-point line by connecting on 9 of 25 and ended up shooting 14 out of 17 from the free throw line (82.4%). In the matter of cleaning the glass, Pittsburgh allowed North Carolina to collect 26 in total (5 on the offensive side).

Cameron Corhen ended up being a major contributor for the Panthers in the game. He accumulated 23 points in his 36 mins on the court and had 6 dimes in this contest. He buried 10 of 17 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 58.8%, and accounted for 6 rebounds.

Pittsburgh has a record of 9-17 for the year. As an offense, the Panthers are connecting on 43.4% from the field, which ranks 288th in D-1. Pittsburgh has totaled 1,818 pts for the year (69.9 per contest) and they pull in 34.7 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 13.2 times per game (240th in the country) and they turn it over 11.3 times per game. The Panthers commit 16.8 personal fouls per contest and they go 66.3% from the charity stripe.

The Pittsburgh defense gives up 35.4% on 3-pointers (202 of 570) and their opponents are converting on 76.5% of their shots from the free throw line. They surrender 13.5 dimes and 32.3 boards on a nightly basis, ranking them 189th and 60th in the nation. The Panthers on the defensive end are ranked 121st in college in points given up per game with 71.8. They are forcing 10.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 46.0% from the floor (290th in college hoops).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Notre Dame

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