Western Michigan Broncos vs Ball State Cardinals Prediction, 1/29/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Western Michigan Broncos vs Ball State Cardinals

Date: Saturday, January 29, 2022

Location: Worthen Arena in Muncie, IN

TV: ESPN3

Worthen Arena is where the Ball State Cardinals (8-10) will try to beat the Western Michigan Broncos (4-15) on Saturday.

The Western Michigan Broncos played Kent State and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 75-64 in their last game. With respect to personal fouls, the Broncos ended up finishing with 20 and Kent State recorded 11 personal fouls. They also converted 7 of their 24 attempts from distance. Kent State shot 66.7% from the charity stripe by making 14 of 21 attempts. Additionally, Kent State totaled 35 boards (10 offensive, 25 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Kent State recorded 15 assists and had 6 steals in this matchup. When discussing the defense, Western Michigan allowed their opponent to shoot 48.2% from the floor on 27 out of 56 shooting. They also dished out 12 dimes in this contest while forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and having 8 steals. With regard to hauling in rebounds, they collected 23 with 5 of them being offensive. At the charity stripe, the Broncos converted 10 of their 14 shots for a percentage of 71.4%. Western Michigan walked away from the contest having earned a 40.4% field goal percentage (23 out of 57) and made 8 of their 26 three-point attempts.

Lamar Norman is one guy who played a role for the contest. He totaled 22 points on 9 of 15 shooting. He played for 38 minutes played and also snagged 2 rebounds. He finished shooting 60.0% from the floor and also totaled 3 assists.

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Western Michigan enters this matchup with a record of 4-15 so far this season. They turn the ball over 14.9 times per contest and as a group are committing 16.6 personal fouls per contest. As a team, Western Michigan is pulling down 33.6 boards per contest and has tallied 201 assists this year, which ranks 306th in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. The Broncos are shooting 31.8% from downtown (150 of 471) and 70.2% from the free throw line. They average 65.8 points per outing (307th in college hoops) while hitting 42.3% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Broncos have forced 10.6 turnovers per contest and they draw 14.5 fouls. They are giving up 33.6% on 3-point shots and they are ranked 337th in college basketball in opponents points per game (77.7). The Broncos defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 46.3% (533 of 1,150) and they surrender 35.8 boards per game as a basketball team. They currently rank 276th in college basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 265 surrendered on the season.

For their last game, the Ball State Cardinals went home victorious with a score of 81-64 when they played Miami. The Cardinals were able to corral 26 defensive boards and 4 offensive boards totaling 30 for the contest. They turned it over 12 times, while earning 3 steals in the matchup. Miami committed 15 personal fouls in this game which got the Cardinals to the free throw line for 15 attempts. They were able to make 13 of the free throws for a clip of 86.7%. In terms of 3-point attempts, Ball State converted 8 of their 13 attempts (61.5%). When the game finished, the Cardinals finished shooting 30 out of 48 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 62.5%. The Cardinals allowed Miami to convert 25 of their 63 attempts from the field which gave them a percentage of 39.7% in this contest. They shot 29.6% from three-point range by connecting on 8 out of 27 and finished the game at 6 out of 7 from the free throw line (85.7%). When it comes to rebounding, Ball State allowed Miami to snag 18 in total (7 on the offensive side).

Miryne Thomas was important for the Cardinals for the game. He accumulated 26 points in his 32 minutes on the court and added 4 assists for this contest. He converted 9 out of 12 in this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 75.0%, and had 8 rebounds.

Ball State has a mark of 8-10 on the year. The Cardinals are committing 17.7 fouls every game while shooting 68.7% from the free throw line. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 13.3 times per game (180th in college basketball) and they are losing possession via turnover 14.2 times per game. Ball State has scored 1,335 pts on the year (74.2 per contest) and they pull down 35.7 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Cardinals are shooting 44.2% from the floor, which has them ranked 184th in college basketball.

The Ball State defense allows 35.9% on shots from 3-point land (162 of 451) and opponents are connecting on 71.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They have allowed 13.5 assists and 36.6 rebounds per contest, which ranks them 250th and 281st in those defensive categories. The Cardinals on the defensive side of the court are 331st in college basketball in points allowed per game with 76.7. They have forced 12.2 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 44.8% from the floor (283rd in D-1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Western Michigan

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