Ball State Cardinals vs Ohio Bobcats Prediction, 1/22/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Ball State Cardinals vs Ohio Bobcats

Date: Friday, January 22, 2021

Location: Convocation Center in Athens, OH

TV: CBSSN

Odds/Point Spread: Ball State (+3)

The Ball State Cardinals (6-6) travel to Convocation Center on Friday where they'll take on the Ohio Bobcats (7-6). Ball State opens this game as 3-point underdogs. The O/U opens at 151.

Ball State will enter this game with a record of 6-6 this year. They are giving up possession 13.3 times per contest and as a basketball team they commit 18.5 fouls per game. As a team, Ball State is pulling down 35.5 boards per game and is sitting with 149 dimes on the year, which has them ranked 201st in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. The Cardinals are hitting 33.8% on 3-point shots (90 of 266) and 70.7% from the free throw line. They average 72.8 pts per game (162nd in the nation) on 44.3% from the floor. When they are on defense, the Cardinals are able to force 13.7 turnovers per contest and they draw 19.3 personal fouls. The Cardinals defensively are giving up a shooting percentage of 42.9% (309 of 721) and they relinquish 37.4 rebounds per game as a group. They currently rank 170th in college hoops in allowing assists with 147 conceded so far this season. They relinquish 31.0% on 3-point attempts while they are 219th in the country in PPG allowed (71.8).

The Ball State Cardinals took the court against the Miami RedHawks and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 81-71 in their last contest. Ball State walked away from the game with a 43.1% FG percentage (22 of 51) and knocked down 8 out of their 19 shots from beyond the perimeter. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Cardinals knocked down 19 of their 19 attempts for a percentage of 100.0%. With respect to hauling in rebounds, they compiled 32 with 7 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 14 assists for the matchup as well as having 3 steals and 5 blocked shots. With regard to defending, Ball State allowed their opponent to shoot 43.1% from the floor on 22 of 51 shooting. Miami dished out 14 assists and had 10 steals in the matchup. In addition, the RedHawks snagged 30 boards (10 offensive, 20 defensive) and got 5 rejections. Miami finished the game at 71.1% from the free throw line by knocking down 27 of their 38 shots. They also knocked down 8 of 22 tries from beyond the perimeter.

Ishmael El-Amin is a player who was a major factor for this contest. He accounted for 17 points on 5 of 11 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 34 mins played and also snagged 2 rebounds. El-Amin finished the game at 45.5% from the field and also totaled 2 dimes. An additional guy that played a role in the matchup for the Cardinals was K.J. Walton. He collected 10 boards and had 2 assists. He finished the game shooting 44.4% from the floor for this contest by going 4-of-9 (17 points). When the final whistle was blown, Walton was on the court for 32 minutes.

Ohio has a mark of 7-6 for the campaign. The Bobcats are responsible for committing 16.0 fouls every game and they connect on 68.1% from the charity stripe. They are getting an assist 18.1 times per game (14th in the country) and they are giving up possession 11.7 times per contest. Ohio has accounted for 1,037 pts this season (79.8 per contest) and they pull down 31.9 rebounds per game. When it comes to offensive execution, the Bobcats are connecting on 48.5% from the field, which is 45th in the nation. The Bobcats defensively are ranked 268th in the country in points given up per game with 74.5. The Ohio defense concedes 35.6% on 3-pointers (103 of 289) and opponents are knocking down 77.2% of their free throw attempts. They give up 14.5 assists and 33.7 boards per contest, which is 275th and 114th in those categories. They are able to force 14.6 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 46.2% from the floor (286th in D-1).

In their last game, the Ohio Bobcats took a loss by a final score of 89-79 against the Kent State Golden Flashes. The Bobcats were able to pull down 15 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive rebounds for a total of 20 for this game. They also blocked 2 shots while getting 6 steals for the game. The Golden Flashes had 12 personal fouls for the contest which got the Bobcats to the free throw line for 14 shots. They were able to knock down 11 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 78.6%. Pertaining to shooting from 3-point land, Ohio made 14 of their 36 tries (38.9%). In all, the Bobcats went 27 out of 63 from the floor which had them shooting 42.9%. The Bobcats allowed the Golden Flashes to convert 35 of their 61 attempts from the field which gave them a percentage of 57.4% for the contest. They finished shooting 36.0% from beyond the arc by shooting 9 out of 25 and ended up shooting 10 of 15 at the free throw line (66.7%). Concerning attacking the glass, Ohio permitted Kent State to get 39 overall (11 offensive).

Ben Vander Plas was important for the Bobcats in this matchup. He made 9 of 15 for the contest giving him a field goal percentage of 60.0%, which had him sitting at 24 points. Plas totaled 2 boards in his 32 mins played and earned 5 dimes in this game. An additional guy that ended being a contributor for Ohio was Jason Preston. He racked up 23 points in 38 minutes played by way of 8 of 14 from the floor in this matchup. Preston ended up shooting 57.1% from the floor and also earning 10 dimes and 5 rebounds.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Ohio (-3)

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