Ohio Bobcats vs Ball State Cardinals Prediction, 3/9/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Ohio Bobcats vs Ball State Cardinals

Date: Thursday, March 9, 2023

Location: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Ball State Cardinals (20-11) will play the Ohio Bobcats (18-13) at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Thursday.

The Ohio Bobcats took the court against Bowling Green and earned the victory with a final of 92-58 in their last game. In reference to personal fouls, the Bobcats left the arena with 17 and Bowling Green recorded 15 personal fouls. They also made 5 of their 26 attempts from distance. Bowling Green ended up shooting 65.2% from the free throw line by burying 15 of 23 shots. On top of that, Bowling Green grabbed 33 rebounds (10 offensive, 23 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Bowling Green earned 10 dimes and had 4 steals for the matchup. In reference to defense, Ohio allowed their opponent to shoot 31.7% from the floor on 19 out of 60 shooting. They also distributed 15 assists in this game while forcing the other team into 14 turnovers and getting 10 steals. In relation to hauling in rebounds, they earned 36 with 10 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Bobcats buried 14 of 15 attempts for a percentage of 93.3%. Ohio finished having earned a 49.3% field goal percentage (34 out of 69) and converted 10 of their 32 shots from downtown.

Dwight Wilson is one player who had an impact in this contest. He finished with 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting. He was on the court for 23 mins and also totaled 7 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 80.0% from the field and earned 1 assist.

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Ohio enters this one with a record of 18-13 for the campaign. They have an average of 78.6 points per contest (33rd in the country) while hitting 46.0% from the field. The Bobcats are hitting 37.2% on shots from downtown (274 of 736) and 72.6% from the charity stripe. As a team, Ohio is grabbing 37.1 rebounds per contest and has accumulated 396 assists for the season, which has them ranked 216th in college hoops in terms of passing the rock. They turn it over 11.0 times per contest and as a group are committing 17.7 personal fouls per game.

When they are on the defensive end, the Bobcats have forced 12.4 turnovers per contest while drawing 16.3 personal fouls. They surrender 34.2% on 3-pointers and they rank 267th in D-1 in PPG allowed (72.9). The Bobcats defense is allowing a shooting percentage of 44.4% (806 of 1,814) and they concede 34.7 rebounds per game as a squad. They currently rank 146th in Division 1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 385 surrendered on the campaign.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Ball State Cardinals took a loss by a final score of 87-81 when they played Toledo. In reference to how they cleaned up the glass, Ball State allowed Toledo to get 25 overall (4 on the offensive side). They finished shooting 66.7% from downtown by hitting 10 of 15 and walked away from this one shooting 11 of 12 at the free throw line (91.7%). The Cardinals permitted Toledo to convert 33 out of their 60 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 55.0% in this contest. At the conclusion of this game, the Cardinals finished the game shooting 31 out of 57 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 54.4%. In terms of 3-point shots, Ball State made 5 of 20 attempts (25.0%). They were able to make 14 of the free throws for a rate of 73.7%. Toledo had 17 personal fouls in this contest which took the Cardinals to the free throw line for 19 tries. They also gave up possession of the ball 10 times, while recording 3 steals for this contest. The Cardinals pulled down 23 defensive rebounds and 4 offensive boards for a total of 27 in this contest.

Payton Sparks ended up having an impact for the Cardinals for the matchup. He made 9 out of 12 for the contest giving him a rate of 75.0%, and accumulated 11 rebounds. He earned 24 points in his 31 minutes of playing time and had 2 dimes for this contest.

Ball State has a mark of 20-11 so far this year. The Cardinals are committing 16.5 personal fouls every game and they go 68.6% from the free throw line. Their rate of earning assists is at 13.3 times per game (164th in the nation) and they turn it over 12.2 times per contest. Ball State has accumulated 2,375 points for the campaign (76.6 per game) and they collect 36.0 boards per contest. As an offensive unit, the Cardinals are shooting 47.4% from the floor, which is ranked 35th in D-1.

The Cardinals are ranked 205th in college hoops in PPG given up with 71.0. They are able to force 11.7 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 43.8% from the field (190th in college basketball). The Ball State defense gives up 38.0% on shots from distance (226 of 594) and their opponents are converting on 72.7% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 9.5 dimes and 32.5 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 10th and 86th in college basketball.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Ball State

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