Saint Louis Billikens vs Rhode Island Rams Prediction, 2/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Saint Louis Billikens vs Rhode Island Rams

Date: Tuesday, February 17, 2026

Location: Thomas M. Ryan Center in Kingston, RI

TV: ESPN+

The Saint Louis Billikens (24-1) are traveling to Thomas M. Ryan Center on Tuesday where they will play the Rhode Island Rams (14-11).

The Saint Louis Billikens faced Loyola and notched a win by a score of 86-59 in their last game. Saint Louis walked away from the game having earned a 50.8% field goal percentage (33 of 65) and converted 14 out of their 32 three-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Billikens made 6 of 8 tries for a percentage of 75.0%. Pertaining to grabbing rebounds, they compiled a total of 42 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 23 assists in this game as well as forcing the opposition into 10 turnovers and having 7 steals. When it comes to the defense, Saint Louis allowed the other team to go 33.9% from the floor on 20 of 59 shooting. Loyola totaled 16 assists and had 8 steals in the matchup. Furthermore, Loyola collected 25 rebounds (5 offensive, 20 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Loyola ended up going 50.0% when shooting free throws by making 9 of their 18 shots. They knocked down 10 out of their 38 attempts from long range. In reference to personal fouls, the Billikens ended up walking away with 15 while Loyola totaled 9 personal fouls.

Ishan Sharma is one guy who was a factor in this contest. He was able to score 14 points on 5 out of 8 shooting. He played 21 minutes played and snagged 2 rebounds. He ended up shooting 62.5% from the field and recorded 5 assists.

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Saint Louis will play this contest with a win-loss mark of 24-1 this season. They average 90.8 points per game (4th in D-1) while hitting 52.0% from the floor. The Billikens are shooting 40.9% on shots from downtown (288 of 704) and 73.6% from the free throw line. As a unit, Saint Louis is pulling in 42.1 boards per game and has accounted for 486 assists so far this year, which has them ranked 8th in the nation in terms of passing the rock. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.2 times per contest and as a unit they commit 18.3 fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end, the Billikens have forced 11.8 turnovers per game and they draw 16.4 fouls. They are conceding 26.9% from beyond the arc and they rank 34th in college in points per game allowed (67.3). The Billikens are giving up a FG percentage of 36.3% (557 of 1,535) and they concede 32.0 rebounds per game as a group. They are 21st in the nation in allowing assists with 277 surrendered for the year.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Rhode Island Rams took a defeat with a final score of 70-66 when they faced Fordham. When discussing rebounds, Rhode Island permitted Fordham to snag 38 in total (8 offensive). They finished 34.8% from beyond the arc by going 8 of 23 and ended up going 14 of 23 from the free throw line (60.9%). The Rams allowed Fordham to convert 24 out of 54 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.4% in the matchup. When all was said and done, the Rams finished the game shooting 21 out of 52 from the floor which had them shooting 40.4%. With respect to shots from beyond the arc, Rhode Island converted 8 of 24 tries (33.3%). They were able to knock down 16 of the free throw tries for a clip of 61.5%. Fordham committed 19 personal fouls for this contest which got the Rams to the charity stripe for a total of 26 shots. They gave up possession of the ball 12 times, while earning 7 steals for this game. The Rams corralled 25 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds totaling 32 in this matchup.

Tyler Cochran ended up having an impact for the Rams for this game. He converted 9 out of 13 for the matchup giving him a rate of 69.2%, and tallied 9 rebounds. He earned 25 points in his 43 mins on the court and added 2 dimes in this contest.

Rhode Island has a record of 14-11 for the season. The Rams are responsible for committing 18.3 fouls per game and they shoot 71.8% from the free throw line. They are getting an assist 11.4 times per game (335th in college hoops) and they are losing possession via turnover 12.6 times per game. Rhode Island has 1,804 pts on the campaign (72.2 per game) and they average 32.7 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Rams are shooting 45.0% from the floor, which is ranked 196th in D-1.

The Rams on defense are ranked 52nd in college in points allowed per contest with 68.5. They are able to force 14.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 44.0% from the field (186th in the nation). The Rhode Island defense allows 35.9% on shots from 3-point land (194 of 541) and their opposition makes 70.6% of their free throw shots. They have conceded 12.3 assists and 32.4 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 94th and 62nd in college.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Saint Louis

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