UMass Lowell River Hawks vs Vermont Catamounts Prediction, 2/26/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UMass Lowell River Hawks vs Vermont Catamounts

Date: Thursday, February 26, 2026

Location: Patrick Gymnasium in Burlington, VT

TV: ESPN+

The UMass Lowell River Hawks (13-15) are en route to Patrick Gymnasium on Thursday where they will try to beat the Vermont Catamounts (18-11).

The UMass Lowell River Hawks played Binghamton and notched a win by a score of 92-79 in their last game. UMass Lowell wrapped up the contest having earned a 59.3% field goal percentage (32 of 54) and made 8 out of their 16 shots from 3-point land. From the charity stripe, the River Hawks buried 20 of 30 tries for a percentage of 66.7%. Concerning pulling down boards, they earned 28 with 8 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 22 dimes in the matchup as well as forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and earning 3 steals. Pertaining to defense, UMass Lowell allowed their opponent to shoot 63.0% from the floor on 34 of 54 shooting. Binghamton distributed 18 assists and had but didn't notch a steal. In addition, Binghamton grabbed 20 rebounds (2 offensive, 18 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Binghamton went 45.5% from the charity stripe by converting 5 of 11 shots. They also knocked down 6 out of their 11 shots from 3-point land. In regard to fouls, the River Hawks ended up with 12 and Binghamton recorded 19 fouls.

Angel Montas is a player who came through in the game. He notched 30 points on 12 out of 15 shooting. He played for 39 minutes and collected 5 boards. He finished 80.0% from the field and distributed 1 assist.

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UMass Lowell heads into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 13-15 for the year. They are turning it over 12.7 times per game and as a team they are committing 14.8 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, UMass Lowell is collecting 37.4 boards per game and has accounted for 352 dimes this year, which is 275th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. The River Hawks are hitting 33.5% on shots from downtown (167 of 499) and 66.6% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 76.1 points per outing (178th in D-1) while hitting 47.2% from the field.

Defensively, the River Hawks are able to force 10.3 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.4 fouls. They rank 228th in D-1 in allowing assists with 387 relinquished on the season. The River Hawks defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 46.0% (797 of 1,732) and they relinquish 32.3 boards per game as a squad. They are surrendering 33.6% on 3-pointers and they are 253rd in the nation in points per game allowed (76.6).

When they last played, the Vermont Catamounts took home the win by a final score of 70-64 when they faced NJIT. When talking about how they attacked the glass, Vermont permitted NJIT to pull down 26 in total (4 on the offensive glass). They shot 37.5% from distance by going 6 of 16 and ended up going 16 out of 19 from the free throw line (84.2%). The Catamounts allowed NJIT to knock down 21 of 53 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 39.6% for this game. When the final whistle blew, the Catamounts went 27 out of 52 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 51.9%. Concerning shooting from beyond the arc, Vermont made 4 of their 20 attempts (20.0%). They were able to make 12 of them for a percentage of 57.1%. NJIT committed 19 fouls in this matchup which got the Catamounts to the charity stripe for a total of 21 tries. They also turned the ball over 8 times, while earning 2 steals for the contest. The Catamounts were able to snag 26 defensive boards and 6 offensive boards for a total of 32 for this contest.

Gus Yalden ended up being important for the Catamounts in the game. He made 10 out of 15 for this game for a field goal percentage of 66.7%, and totaled 3 rebounds. He accumulated 21 points in his 27 mins of playing time and had 2 dimes in this contest.

Vermont has a mark of 18-11 on the campaign. The Catamounts are committing 17.2 fouls per game and they go 72.7% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 13.2 times per game (241st in the country) and they turn it over 9.6 times per contest. Vermont has totaled 2,162 pts for the year (74.6 per game) and they grab 35.3 rebounds per game. As an offensive team, the Catamounts are connecting on 46.7% from the floor, which is 97th in the country.

The Vermont defense gives up 35.7% on 3-point shots (235 of 658) and opponents are making 74.0% of their free throw attempts. They have given up 11.8 dimes and 31.1 total boards per game, ranking them 59th and 30th in those categories on the defensive end. The Catamounts on the defensive side of the court are 76th in college in PPG surrendered with 69.8. They are forcing their opponents into 9.4 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 43.1% from the field (117th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Vermont

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