Eastern Kentucky Colonels vs Purdue Boilermakers Prediction, 12/29/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Eastern Kentucky Colonels vs Purdue Boilermakers

Date: Friday, December 29, 2023

Location: Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, IN

TV: BTN

Mackey Arena is the location where the Purdue Boilermakers (11-1) will attempt to defeat the Eastern Kentucky Colonels (4-8) on Friday.

The Eastern Kentucky Colonels faced Alabama and ended up losing by a score of 111-67 in their last game. Eastern Kentucky walked away from the contest with a 33.8% FG percentage (24 out of 71) and converted 8 out of their 29 3-point shots. From the free throw line, the Colonels buried 11 of 17 attempts for a percentage of 64.7%. Regarding hauling in boards, they earned 36 with 11 of them being of the offensive variety. They also doled out 8 assists for the contest while forcing 10 turnovers and earning 7 steals. With respect to defense, Eastern Kentucky allowed 58.0% from the field on 40 of 69 shooting. Alabama distributed 29 assists and had 8 steals in the game. On top of that, Alabama collected 43 rebounds (9 offensive, 34 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Alabama finished the game at 60.0% from the free throw line by making 12 of 20 tries. They also converted 19 of 38 attempts from long range. When it comes to fouls, the Colonels ended up finishing with 17 while Alabama racked up 10 fouls.

Leland Walker is one guy who was a major contributor in the game. He finished with 20 points on 7 of 21 shooting. He saw the court for 29 minutes played and pulled down 3 boards. He finished shooting 33.3% from the field and recorded 6 assists.

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Eastern Kentucky will enter this contest with a record of 4-8 on the year. They are averaging 84.7 pts per game (23rd in the country) while going 44.6% from the field. The Colonels are shooting 32.4% on 3-pointers (101 of 312) and 65.7% from the free throw line. As a unit, Eastern Kentucky is collecting 44.5 boards per contest and is sitting with 196 dimes this season, which is 65th in college basketball in terms of passing the rock. They lose possession by turning the ball over 13.5 times per contest and as a group are committing 17.5 fouls every game.

On the defensive end of the court, the Colonels are able to force 14.3 turnovers per contest while drawing 16.7 personal fouls. They concede 40.5% on shots from downtown and they are ranked 343rd in college hoops in PPG allowed (79.8). The Colonels are allowing a field goal percentage of 43.2% (342 of 791) and they surrender 38.3 boards per game as a squad. They are currently ranked 303rd in D-1 in allowing assists with 179 relinquished so far this year.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Purdue Boilermakers walked away with a victory by a final of 100-57 when they faced Jacksonville. The Boilermakers pulled down 26 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds for a total of 36 for the game. They also turned the ball over 9 times, while recording 14 steals in this contest. Jacksonville was called for 20 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Boilermakers to the charity stripe for 26 shots. They were able to make 21 of those for a percentage of 80.8%. With respect to three-point attempts, Purdue converted 9 out of 29 tries (31.0%). When the final whistle blew, the Boilermakers went 35 for 68 from the floor which had them sitting at 51.5%. The Boilermakers allowed Jacksonville to knock down 21 out of 57 tries from the field which had them at 36.8% in the game. They finished the game shooting 18.2% from downtown by connecting on 4 out of 22 and finished the contest at 9 of 13 from the free throw line (69.2%). In regard to rebounds, Purdue permitted Jacksonville to get 28 in all (7 on the offensive side).

Zach Edey ended up having an impact for the Boilermakers in this matchup. He converted 5 out of 8 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 62.5%, and had 8 rebounds. He earned 18 points in his 24 minutes of playing time and had 2 dimes for the matchup.

Purdue has a mark of 11-1 so far this season. On the offensive side of the ball, the Boilermakers are shooting 49.7% from the field, which is 20th in college hoops. Purdue has tallied 1,048 pts on the year (87.3 per contest) and they grab 40.9 rebounds per contest. They are assisting teammates 18.9 times per contest (11th in the nation) and they are turning it over 12.0 times per contest. The Boilermakers commit 14.5 fouls every game and they connect on 72.2% from the charity stripe.

The Boilermakers defensively are ranked 138th in college basketball in PPG allowed with 69.3. They are forcing their opponents into 11.3 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 40.1% from the floor (54th in college basketball). The Purdue defense concedes 28.9% on 3-pointers (92 of 318) and opponents are making 68.2% of their foul shots. They have relinquished 14.9 dimes and 30.4 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 318th and 18th in college basketball.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Eastern Kentucky

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