UMKC Kangaroos vs North Dakota State Bison Prediction, 2/21/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UMKC Kangaroos vs North Dakota State Bison

Date: Saturday, February 21, 2026

Location: Scheels Center in Fargo, ND

TV: ESPN+

Scheels Center is the location where the North Dakota State Bison (22-6) will take on the UMKC Kangaroos (4-22) on Saturday.

The UMKC Kangaroos faced St. Thomas and went home with a loss by a final score of 104-64 in their last game. In regard to personal fouls, the Kangaroos ended up finishing with 16 while St. Thomas accounted for 11 personal fouls. They also knocked down 14 of their 29 attempts from downtown. St. Thomas went 62.5% when shooting free throws by making 10 of their 16 attempts. Furthermore, St. Thomas collected 32 rebounds (10 offensive, 22 defensive), but didn't have a block. St. Thomas earned 23 dimes and had 5 steals for the matchup. With regard to the defense, UMKC allowed the other team to go 58.0% from the field on 40 out of 69 shooting. They also recorded 15 assists in this contest while forcing 7 turnovers and having 5 steals. In terms of grabbing rebounds, they compiled 24 with 6 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Kangaroos made 2 of their 2 tries for a rate of 100.0%. UMKC wrapped up the game with a 44.6% FG percentage (29 of 65) and buried 4 of their 25 3-pointers.

Chris Dockery is a player who was important in this matchup. He scored 13 points on 5 of 10 shooting. He saw the court for 30 minutes and also totaled 6 rebounds. He finished 50.0% from the field and earned 1 assist.

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UMKC steps onto the hardwood with a win-loss record of 4-22 for the season. They have an average of 70.3 pts per game (309th in the country) while connecting on 42.0% from the floor. The Kangaroos are connecting on 30.2% on shots from downtown (169 of 559) and 69.9% from the charity stripe. As a unit, UMKC is grabbing 34.2 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 311 assists on the year, which ranks 327th in the nation in terms of passing. They cough up possession 13.6 times per game and as a group are committing 16.7 fouls every game.

When they are on the defensive end, the Kangaroos are able to force 11.8 turnovers per contest while drawing 17.7 personal fouls. They currently rank 312th in college in allowing assists to their opponents with 411 surrendered this season. The Kangaroos defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 48.2% (797 of 1,654) and they surrender 38.9 rebounds per game as a team. They are giving up 34.9% on 3-point shots while they are 355th in college in points per game allowed (83.4).

When they last played, the North Dakota State Bison took home the win by a final score of 74-66 when they played South Dakota State. The Bison were able to snag 27 defensive boards and 3 offensive boards for a total of 30 for the game. They also coughed it up 5 times, while earning 7 steals for the game. South Dakota State earned 19 fouls in the matchup which took the Bison to the charity stripe for 26 tries. They were able to make 18 of the free throws for a percentage of 69.2%. In reference to shooting from beyond the arc, North Dakota State made 6 of 21 attempts (28.6%). Overall, the Bison ended up shooting 25 for 52 from the field which had them shooting 48.1%. The Bison allowed South Dakota State to knock down 25 of their 56 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 44.6% for this contest. They went 30.8% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 8 of 26 and finished the contest at 8 of 14 at the charity stripe (57.1%). When it comes to rebounding, North Dakota State allowed South Dakota State to collect 30 in all (5 on the offensive side).

Damari Wheeler-Thomas pitched in for the Bison for this contest. He racked up 23 points in his 34 mins of playing time and totaled 2 assists for the matchup. He knocked down 6 of 11 in this matchup for a rate of 54.5%, and earned 3 rebounds.

North Dakota State has a win-loss mark of 22-6 on the year. As an offensive team, the Bison are hitting on 47.2% from the field, which ranks them 65th in the nation. North Dakota State has accumulated 2,272 points so far this season (81.1 per contest) and they snag 35.6 boards per contest. Their rate of earning assists is at 15.1 times per game (114th in D-1) and they are turning it over 10.8 times per game. The Bison are responsible for committing 14.9 fouls per game and they connect on 73.2% from the charity stripe.

The North Dakota State defense gives up 34.9% on 3-point shots (231 of 662) and their opponents are connecting on 74.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They have relinquished 13.4 assists and 31.8 rebounds per contest, ranking them 184th and 44th in those defensive categories. The Bison on the defensive side of the court are 97th in college in PPG given up with 70.8. They are forcing 14.2 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 44.9% from the floor (236th in the nation).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take UMKC

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