Eastern Michigan Eagles vs Ball State Cardinals Prediction, 2/24/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Eastern Michigan Eagles vs Ball State Cardinals

Date: Saturday, February 24, 2024

Location: Worthen Arena in Muncie, IN

TV: ESPN+

The Ball State Cardinals (13-13) will take on the Eastern Michigan Eagles (10-16) at Worthen Arena on Saturday.

The Eastern Michigan Eagles faced Buffalo and ended up losing by a score of 78-69 in their last contest. Eastern Michigan walked away from the game with a 40.3% field goal percentage (27 out of 67) and buried 6 of their 19 three-point shots. From the free throw line, the Eagles converted 9 of 10 attempts for a percentage of 90.0%. When discussing pulling down boards, they collected a total of 33 with 10 of them being offensive. They also dished out 11 assists for the matchup while creating 9 turnovers and getting 5 steals. In relation to defense, Eastern Michigan let their opponent shoot 47.5% from the field on 29 out of 61 shooting. Buffalo distributed 19 dimes and had 7 steals for the matchup. On top of that, Buffalo grabbed 35 rebounds (12 offensive, 23 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Buffalo walked away from this one shooting 72.7% from the free throw line by knocking down 16 of their 22 attempts. They also converted 4 of 19 attempts from 3-point land. In regard to personal fouls, the Eagles finished with 18 and Buffalo totaled 12 personal fouls.

Tyson Acuff is a player who came through for the contest. He finished the game shooting 35.5% from the field and dished out 4 dimes. He was on the hardwood for 38 minutes and also pulled down 2 boards. He accumulated 26 points on 11 of 31 shooting.

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Eastern Michigan heads into this game with a record of 10-16 for the season. They are turning it over 11.8 times per contest and as a squad are committing 16.5 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Eastern Michigan is grabbing 33.9 boards per game and has earned 273 dimes on the season, which has them ranked 342nd in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Eagles are shooting 31.0% on 3-point shots (152 of 490) and 67.2% from the free throw line. They are averaging 67.7 points per outing (318th in the nation) while hitting 43.7% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Eagles are forcing 10.6 turnovers every game while drawing 15.5 personal fouls. They are ranked 231st in college basketball in giving up assists with 352 surrendered for the campaign. The Eagles defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 46.5% (711 of 1,528) and they surrender 36.0 boards per game as a team. They are surrendering 32.9% on three-point shots while they are 276th in college basketball in PPG allowed (75.1).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Ball State Cardinals walked away with a victory by a final of 70-63 when they faced Northern Illinois. In relation to rebounding, Ball State allowed Northern Illinois to collect 40 overall (13 on the offensive glass). They went 25.0% from distance by going 6 out of 24 and finished the contest at 15 out of 24 at the free throw line (62.5%). The Cardinals allowed Northern Illinois to knock down 21 of their 62 attempts from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 33.9% in this game. When the final whistle was blown, the Cardinals finished 21 for 56 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 37.5%. When discussing shooting from downtown, Ball State converted 7 of 17 tries (41.2%). They were able to make 21 of them for a rate of 77.8%. Northern Illinois committed 20 personal fouls for the contest which took the Cardinals to the free throw line for a total of 27 tries. They also gave up possession 9 times, while getting 5 steals in this contest. The Cardinals collected 27 defensive boards and 5 offensive rebounds for a total of 32 in this matchup.

Jalin Anderson ended up being a factor for the Cardinals for the matchup. He earned 19 points in his 40 minutes on the hardwood and had 7 dimes for the matchup. He knocked down 8 out of 15 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 53.3%, and accumulated 8 rebounds.

Ball State has a mark of 13-13 so far this year. When it comes to offensive execution, the Cardinals are shooting 45.2% from the floor, which is 155th in college hoops. Ball State has earned 1,923 pts on the year (74.0 per game) and they grab 34.8 rebounds per game. They are getting an assist 12.5 times per game (246th in the country) and they are giving up possession 12.1 times per game. The Cardinals are committing 15.3 personal fouls per game and they shoot 76.0% from the free throw line.

The Ball State defense surrenders 34.0% from downtown (181 of 532) and opponents are connecting on 70.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They have surrendered 12.3 dimes and 33.0 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks 131st and 84th in college hoops. The Cardinals on the defensive side of the court are 149th in D-1 in points per game surrendered with 70.9. They are able to force 11.7 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 44.9% from the field (252nd in D-1).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Eastern Michigan

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