UT Martin Skyhawks vs Eastern Illinois Panthers Prediction, 1/29/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UT Martin Skyhawks vs Eastern Illinois Panthers

Date: Thursday, January 29, 2026

Location: Groniger Arena in Charleston, IL

TV: ESPN+

Groniger Arena is the location where the Eastern Illinois Panthers (9-12) will go up against the UT Martin Skyhawks (15-5) on Thursday.

The UT Martin Skyhawks played SE Missouri State and took a loss by a score of 66-50 in their last game. When discussing personal fouls, the Skyhawks ended up walking away with 16 and SE Missouri State accounted for 18 personal fouls. They converted 11 of their 32 attempts from 3-point range. SE Missouri State finished 52.9% from the free throw line by converting 9 of 17 attempts. Additionally, SE Missouri State collected 33 boards (14 offensive, 19 defensive), but didn't have a block. SE Missouri State earned 15 dimes and had 6 steals in the game. In reference to defense, UT Martin allowed the other team to go 39.7% from the floor on 23 of 58 shooting. They also recorded 6 assists for the matchup as well as forcing 10 turnovers and earning 7 steals. In regard to pulling down rebounds, they compiled 37 with 16 of them being offensive. When they shot from the free throw line, the Skyhawks converted 13 of their 22 attempts for a rate of 59.1%. UT Martin walked away from the game having earned a 32.7% FG percentage (16 out of 49) and converted 5 of their 22 three-point shots.

Matas Deniusas is a guy who played a role in this game. He finished 40.0% from the floor but had no assists at the end of the game. He saw the court for 23 minutes and also snagged 6 rebounds. He ended up scoring 11 points on 4 of 10 shooting.

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UT Martin will enter this game with a win-loss record of 15-5 for the campaign. They turn it over 15.0 times per contest and as a unit they commit 17.2 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, UT Martin is collecting 41.5 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 269 dimes on the season, which ranks 250th in college in terms of passing the rock. The Skyhawks are shooting 31.3% on three-point shots (158 of 505) and 67.9% from the free throw line. They are averaging 72.9 points per game (269th in college) while shooting 43.2% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Skyhawks have forced 13.4 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 18.7 fouls. They are ranked 82nd in D-1 in giving up assists with 244 conceded on the campaign. The Skyhawks defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 38.6% (441 of 1,143) and they relinquish 32.9 boards per contest as a squad. They are surrendering 27.7% on 3-point shots and they are ranked 10th in Division 1 in opponents points per game (64.3).

For their last game, the Eastern Illinois Panthers took a loss by a score of 73-68 when they faced Morehead State. In regard to how they rebounded, Eastern Illinois allowed Morehead State to grab 28 overall (11 on the offensive side). They finished 50.0% from downtown via 4 out of 8 and walked away from this one shooting 21 of 24 from the free throw line (87.5%). The Panthers permitted Morehead State to bury 24 out of 46 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 52.2% in this matchup. When all was said and done, the Panthers finished 21 for 58 from the field which had them shooting 36.2%. In the matter of shots from beyond the arc, Eastern Illinois converted 6 of their 14 tries (42.9%). They were able to make 20 of them for a percentage of 83.3%. Morehead State was called for 19 fouls for this game which got the Panthers to the free throw line for a total of 24 attempts. They turned it over 10 times, while getting 8 steals in this game. The Panthers collected 11 defensive rebounds and 15 offensive rebounds for a total of 26 in this matchup.

Preston Turner was important for the Panthers for this game. He made 5 of 12 for this game giving him a field goal percentage of 41.7%, and had 3 rebounds. He recorded 18 points in his 25 mins on the hardwood and had 1 assist for the matchup.

Eastern Illinois has a win-loss record of 9-12 on the year. On the offensive side of the court, the Panthers are shooting 43.0% from the floor, which is 298th in the nation. Eastern Illinois has earned 1,412 pts for the campaign (67.2 per game) and they pull down 33.1 rebounds per game. They are dishing out assists 12.7 times per game (280th in college) and they are turning it over 13.2 times per game. The Panthers are responsible for committing 16.5 personal fouls per contest while shooting 74.9% from the free throw line.

The Eastern Illinois defense surrenders 29.0% on 3-point shots (149 of 513) and opponents are connecting on 74.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They concede 13.7 dimes and 35.5 boards on a nightly basis, ranking them 208th and 242nd in college hoops. The Panthers on the defensive side of the court are 78th in college in PPG given up with 69.6. They are forcing their opponents into 13.6 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 42.4% from the field (106th in college).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Eastern Illinois

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