Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Fairfield Stags Prediction, 2/20/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Fairfield Stags

Date: Friday, February 20, 2026

Location: Leo D. Mahoney Arena in Fairfield, CT

TV: ESPN+

The Sacred Heart Pioneers (12-16) are headed to Leo D. Mahoney Arena on Friday where they will meet the Fairfield Stags (16-11).

The Sacred Heart Pioneers played Rider and walked away with a win by a score of 86-75 in their last game. Concerning personal fouls, the Pioneers finished with 11 and Rider finished the game with 18 personal fouls. They converted 7 of their 15 tries from long range. Rider shot 72.7% from the charity stripe by knocking down 8 of 11 shots. Furthermore, Rider totaled 33 boards (12 offensive, 21 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Rider earned 12 assists and had 5 steals in the game. Pertaining to defense, Sacred Heart allowed 44.1% from the field on 30 out of 68 shooting. They also recorded 14 dimes in this game as well as forcing the opposition into 7 turnovers and earning 5 steals. In terms of grabbing rebounds, they earned 33 with 9 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Pioneers converted 20 of their 23 attempts for a percentage of 87.0%. Sacred Heart ended the contest having earned a 44.3% field goal percentage (27 out of 61) and made 12 of their 33 shots from beyond the arc.

Anquan Hill is a guy who was a factor for the contest. He walked away with 21 points on 6 of 13 shooting. He played for 36 mins played and also snagged 9 boards. He ended up going 46.2% from the floor and also totaled 1 assist.

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Sacred Heart heads into this game with a mark of 12-16 this year. They cough up possession 12.3 times per game and as a unit are committing 15.2 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Sacred Heart is pulling down 34.6 boards per game and has accumulated 419 dimes for the year, which is 68th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Pioneers are hitting 36.5% on shots from distance (301 of 825) and 77.8% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 76.3 points per game (171st in Division 1) on 43.8% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Pioneers are forcing 10.8 turnovers per contest and they draw 15.6 fouls. They are currently ranked 356th in college in giving up assists to their opponents with 466 relinquished on the year. The Pioneers are allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 46.3% (784 of 1,695) and they surrender 34.9 boards per contest as a team. They are surrendering 35.4% on 3-point shots while they are 276th in college in PPG allowed (77.4).

When they last stepped on the court, the Fairfield Stags went home defeated by a final of 83-74 against St. Peter's. The Stags recorded 19 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive boards totaling 31 for this game. They also turned the ball over 15 times, while earning 9 steals in this game. St. Peter's earned 24 fouls in the matchup which took the Stags to the free throw line for a total of 27 tries. They were able to bury 20 of them for a rate of 74.1%. With respect to three-point shots, Fairfield made 4 out of 10 tries (40.0%). In all, the Stags shot 25 for 54 from the field which gave them a rate of 46.3%. The Stags permitted St. Peter's to convert 23 out of 47 attempts from the field which left them with a rate of 48.9% in this contest. They finished the game shooting 56.3% from 3-point land by going 9 of 16 and finished the contest at 28 out of 33 from the free throw line (84.8%). In regard to how they rebounded, Fairfield allowed St. Peter's to snag 26 in total (9 offensive).

Declan Wucherpfennig was important for the Stags in the matchup. He earned 23 points in his 32 minutes on the court, but finished this game without an assist. He knocked down 8 of 12 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 66.7%, and had 8 rebounds.

Fairfield has a win-loss record of 16-11 on the campaign. The Stags have committed 15.6 fouls per contest and they connect on 71.8% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 12.2 times per contest (306th in college) and they turn it over 10.0 times per game. Fairfield has earned 2,040 points on the season (75.6 per contest) and they grab 38.5 boards per contest. As an offense, the Stags are connecting on 43.3% from the field, which is ranked 290th in the nation.

The Fairfield defense gives up 34.7% on 3-point attempts (194 of 559) and opponents are making 75.8% of their free throw attempts. They allow 13.6 assists and 34.6 rebounds every game, which ranks them 199th and 191st in those defensive categories. The Stags on the defensive side of the court are 153rd in college hoops in PPG given up with 72.9. They are able to force 11.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 45.0% from the field (246th in college).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Sacred Heart

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