Western Illinois Leathernecks vs Little Rock Trojans Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Western Illinois Leathernecks vs Little Rock Trojans

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock, AR

TV: ESPN+

The Western Illinois Leathernecks (4-14) are hitting the road to Jack Stephens Center on Saturday where they will take on the Little Rock Trojans (7-10).

The Western Illinois Leathernecks took the court against Eastern Illinois and ended up losing by a score of 57-55 in their last contest. When talking about fouls, the Leathernecks ended up with 18 while Eastern Illinois had 17 fouls. They also made 1 out of their 9 attempts from three-point range. Eastern Illinois finished 78.3% at the charity stripe by making 18 of their 23 attempts. In addition, Eastern Illinois had 32 rebounds (7 offensive, 25 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Eastern Illinois doled out 11 dimes and had 8 steals for the matchup. In regard to the defense, Western Illinois let their opponent shoot 37.3% from the field on 19 out of 51 shooting. They also doled out 10 assists in this game as well as creating 11 turnovers and earning 7 steals. Regarding hauling in rebounds, they collected 35 with 10 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Leathernecks converted 15 of 18 attempts for a rate of 83.3%. Western Illinois wrapped up the game having earned a 31.7% FG percentage (19 of 60) and buried 2 of their 15 3-point attempts.

Karyiek Dixon is one guy who was a contributor in this game. He recorded 14 points on 5 out of 12 shooting. He played for 36 mins and snagged 15 rebounds. He finished 41.7% from the floor and also recorded 2 assists.

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Western Illinois heads into this game with a mark of 4-14 for the campaign. They currently have an average of 65.2 points per contest (352nd in D-1) while hitting 40.6% from the floor. The Leathernecks are connecting on 29.3% from downtown (90 of 307) and 68.1% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Western Illinois is pulling down 34.3 rebounds per game and is sitting with 144 dimes on the year, which is 365th in the country in terms of passing the rock. They turn it over 12.7 times per contest and as a team are committing 16.8 fouls per game.

Defensively, the Leathernecks have forced 11.2 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 17.7 fouls. They are ranked 140th in the nation in allowing assists to their opponents with 221 conceded for the season. The Leathernecks defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 45.6% (466 of 1,021) and they surrender 34.2 rebounds per game as a squad. They are surrendering 35.6% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 186th in college in PPG allowed (73.5).

When they last played, the Little Rock Trojans went home victorious with a score of 82-74 against Lindenwood. The Trojans snagged 17 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards for a total of 30 for this contest. They gave up possession 11 times, while earning 11 steals in this game. Lindenwood committed 15 personal fouls for this game which took the Trojans to the charity stripe for 14 shots. They were able to bury 12 of the free throws for a clip of 85.7%. Regarding shots from distance, Little Rock knocked down 4 out of 16 tries (25.0%). At the conclusion of this game, the Trojans shot 33 for 62 from the field which gave them a percentage of 53.2%. The Trojans allowed Lindenwood to make 28 of their 57 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 49.1% in this game. They finished 28.0% from distance by going 7 out of 25 and ended up going 11 of 14 at the free throw line (78.6%). In regard to how they attacked the glass, Little Rock permitted Lindenwood to pull down 23 overall (9 on the offensive side).

Braxton Bayless ended up being a major contributor for the Trojans in the matchup. He made 8 out of 14 in this matchup giving him a rate of 57.1%, and had 7 rebounds. He earned 21 points in his 38 minutes on the court and had 7 assists in this contest.

Little Rock has a win-loss mark of 7-10 this season. The Trojans are committing 15.4 personal fouls per contest and they go 64.3% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 14.5 times per contest (170th in college hoops) and they lose possession via turnover 15.0 times per game. Little Rock has totaled 1,203 pts for the year (70.8 per game) and they pull down 32.8 boards per contest. In terms of offensive execution, the Trojans are shooting 46.0% from the floor, which is 150th in the nation.

The Trojans defensively are ranked 273rd in the nation in PPG surrendered with 77.0. They have forced 14.2 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 47.0% from the floor (321st in college hoops). The Little Rock defense allows 37.6% on three-point shots (160 of 426) and their opponents are making 70.4% of their foul shots. They allow 15.1 assists and 34.8 boards on a nightly basis, which is ranked 286th and 201st in the nation.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Western Illinois

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