Texas State Bobcats vs Southern Miss Golden Eagles Prediction, 1/8/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Texas State Bobcats vs Southern Miss Golden Eagles

Date: Thursday, January 8, 2026

Location: Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg, MS

TV: ESPN+

Reed Green Coliseum is the location where the Southern Miss Golden Eagles (9-7) will attempt to defeat the Texas State Bobcats (9-7) on Thursday.

The Texas State Bobcats played UL Monroe and took home the win by a score of 84-79 in their last contest. Texas State finished the contest having earned a 51.4% FG percentage (36 out of 70) and made 4 of their 14 3-pointers. At the charity stripe, the Bobcats knocked down 8 of 12 shots for a percentage of 66.7%. When it comes to pulling down rebounds, they collected 35 with 14 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 21 dimes in this matchup while forcing 14 turnovers and getting 12 steals. In terms of the defense, Texas State let their opponent shoot 50.0% from the field on 28 of 56 shooting. UL Monroe distributed 14 dimes and had 8 steals for this contest. Additionally, UL Monroe collected 24 rebounds (3 offensive, 21 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. UL Monroe finished shooting 68.8% from the free throw line by knocking down 11 of 16 shots. They also buried 12 of their 24 tries from three-point range. In the matter of fouls, the Bobcats left the arena with 16 while UL Monroe recorded 10 fouls.

Mark Drone is someone who was a major contributor in this contest. He finished the game at 64.3% from the field and also earned 2 dimes. He was on the hardwood for 36 mins and totaled 6 rebounds. He totaled 24 points on 9 of 14 shooting.

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Texas State will play this game with a record of 9-7 for the year. They are averaging 74.8 points per game (240th in college) while shooting 46.7% from the floor. The Bobcats are shooting 33.6% on 3-point shots (80 of 238) and 74.2% from the free throw line. As a team, Texas State is snagging 37.3 rebounds per game and has accounted for 228 dimes this season, which has them ranked 146th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. They turn it over 13.9 times per contest and as a unit they commit 17.8 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Bobcats are forcing their opponents into 14.1 turnovers every game while drawing 16.2 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 107th in Division 1 in giving up assists to their opponents with 185 conceded on the year. The Bobcats defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 44.7% (393 of 880) and they concede 30.6 boards per contest as a group. They are giving up 36.9% on shots from distance and they are ranked 123rd in college in points per game allowed (71.0).

For their last game, the Southern Miss Golden Eagles took home the win by a final score of 74-67 when they faced Louisiana. The Golden Eagles were able to pull down 22 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 29 for this contest. They also coughed up the ball 14 times, while getting 9 steals for the game. Louisiana committed 20 fouls for the game which took the Golden Eagles to the free throw line for a total of 30 attempts. They were able to make 25 of those for a clip of 83.3%. With respect to three-point shots, Southern Miss converted 3 out of 13 tries (23.1%). In all, the Golden Eagles went 23 out of 45 from the floor which had them at 51.1%. The Golden Eagles allowed Louisiana to knock down 24 out of their 55 tries from the field which gave them a percentage of 43.6% for the game. They finished the game shooting 35.0% from three-point range by shooting 7 of 20 and ended up shooting 12 out of 16 at the free throw line (75.0%). When discussing rebounding, Southern Miss allowed Louisiana to get 22 overall (7 offensive).

Djahi Binet ended up being a factor for the Golden Eagles in this matchup. He tallied 24 points in his 35 mins on the court, but finished this game without an assist. He converted 7 out of 9 in this game for a rate of 77.8%, and totaled 8 rebounds.

Southern Miss has a record of 9-7 so far this year. On the offensive side of the court, the Golden Eagles are shooting 46.1% from the field, which is 145th in college hoops. Southern Miss has tallied 1,217 points so far this year (76.1 per contest) and they grab 37.8 rebounds per contest. They are getting an assist 12.8 times per game (289th in Division 1) and they are giving up possession 13.0 times per game. The Golden Eagles commit 19.1 personal fouls per contest and they connect on 73.9% from the charity stripe.

The Southern Miss defense surrenders 35.0% on shots from distance (135 of 386) and opponents are knocking down 71.6% of their free throw shots. They have conceded 13.3 dimes and 32.3 rebounds every game, which is ranked 183rd and 80th in college hoops. The Golden Eagles on defense are ranked 181st in college hoops in PPG given up with 73.3. They have forced 12.3 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 42.4% from the field (125th in Division 1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Southern Miss

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