UNI Panthers vs St. John's Red Storm Prediction, 3/20/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UNI Panthers vs St. John's Red Storm

Date: Friday, March 20, 2026

Location: Viejas Arena in San Diego, CA

TV: CBS

Odds/Point Spread: St. John's (-10)

The St. John's Red Storm (28-6) will try to beat the UNI Panthers (23-12) at Viejas Arena on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. St. John's is 10-point favorites from oddsmakers. The total comes in at 132.

The UNI Panthers stepped onto the hardwood against UIC and earned the victory with a final of 84-69 in their last contest. When talking about fouls, the Panthers finished with 14 while UIC recorded 14 fouls. They knocked down 6 of 17 shots from beyond the arc. UIC finished shooting 100.0% at the free throw line by making 9 of their 9 attempts. Furthermore, UIC snagged 19 rebounds (9 offensive, 10 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. UIC dished out 13 dimes and had 5 steals for the contest. When discussing defending, UNI allowed the other team to shoot 43.5% from the field on 27 out of 62 shooting. They also recorded 25 assists in this game while forcing the other team into 5 turnovers and earning 3 steals. In regard to grabbing rebounds, they collected 25 with 7 of them being on the offensive end. From the charity stripe, the Panthers converted 10 of their 13 tries for a rate of 76.9%. UNI wrapped up the game having earned a 63.3% FG percentage (31 of 49) and converted 12 of 23 3-point shots.

Trey Campbell is someone who came through in the game. He finished the game shooting 61.5% from the floor and totaled 4 dimes. He saw the court for 37 mins and collected 4 rebounds. He was able to score 23 points on 8 of 13 shooting.

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UNI will enter this matchup with a record of 23-12 on the year. They are averaging 69.9 pts per game (309th in the country) while hitting 47.7% from the field. The Panthers are shooting 35.5% from downtown (272 of 767) and 69.9% from the free throw line. As a unit, UNI is grabbing 31.9 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 526 assists so far this season, which is 66th in the country in terms of passing the ball. They turn the ball over 9.3 times per game and as a unit they are committing 15.3 personal fouls per game.

On the defensive end, the Panthers are forcing their opponents into 11.9 turnovers per game and they draw 14.5 personal fouls. They are 45th in college hoops in giving up assists to the opposition with 378 surrendered for the campaign. The Panthers defensively are allowing a field goal percentage of 40.7% (766 of 1,884) and they surrender 33.0 boards per game as a squad. They are conceding 28.5% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 1st in Division 1 in opponents points per game (61.3).

When they last stepped on the court, the St. John's Red Storm got the win with a final of 72-52 against Connecticut. When talking about team rebounding, St. John's permitted Connecticut to collect 26 in total (12 on the offensive glass). They went 15.8% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 3 of 19 and ended up shooting 11 of 14 from the free throw line (78.6%). The Red Storm allowed Connecticut to convert 19 out of 56 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 33.9% for the contest. In all, the Red Storm went 27 for 56 from the floor which had them at 48.2%. Pertaining to 3-pointers, St. John's made 5 out of their 20 attempts (25.0%). They were able to make 13 of those for a rate of 76.5%. Connecticut committed 25 fouls for the game which got the Red Storm to the free throw line for a total of 17 attempts. They gave up possession of the ball 13 times, while earning 9 steals for the matchup. The Red Storm recorded 22 defensive boards and 8 offensive rebounds totaling 30 in this game.

Bryce Hopkins was important for the Red Storm in this game. He made 7 out of 9 for the game for a field goal percentage of 77.8%, and had 5 rebounds. He scored 18 points in his 38 minutes on the hardwood and added 2 assists for the matchup.

St. John's has a mark of 28-6 for the year. On the offensive side of the court, the Red Storm are shooting 45.4% from the field, which is ranked 167th in college hoops. St. John's has earned 2,773 points for the campaign (81.6 per contest) and they average 38.6 boards per contest. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 16.3 times per game (51st in the country) and they are turning it over 10.5 times per game. The Red Storm are committing 17.3 fouls per game and they connect on 72.7% from the charity stripe.

The St. John's defense concedes 31.3% from downtown (214 of 683) and their opponents are making 71.7% of their shots from the free throw line. They allow 11.8 assists and 34.4 total boards per game, which ranks 58th and 182nd in those categories on the defensive end. The Red Storm on defense are ranked 73rd in college hoops in PPG surrendered with 70.0. They are forcing their opponents into 13.8 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 42.1% from the field (65th in college hoops).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take St. John's (-10)

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