Kennesaw State Owls vs North Florida Ospreys Prediction, 1/18/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Kennesaw State Owls vs North Florida Ospreys

Date: Thursday, January 18, 2024

Location: UNF Arena in Jacksonville, FL

TV: ESPN+

UNF Arena is where the North Florida Ospreys (9-9) will take on the Kennesaw State Owls (12-5) on Thursday.

The Kennesaw State Owls faced off with Florida Gulf Coast and notched a win by a score of 78-75 in their last game. Kennesaw State finished with a 45.8% FG percentage (27 out of 59) and made 7 out of their 28 3-pointers. From the charity stripe, the Owls knocked down 17 of their 24 attempts for a rate of 70.8%. When talking about getting rebounds, they earned 33 with 7 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 12 dimes in the matchup as well as forcing 11 turnovers and having 9 steals. In terms of defending, Kennesaw State let their opponent shoot 43.5% from the floor on 27 out of 62 shooting. Florida Gulf Coast earned 11 assists and had 6 steals for the contest. In addition, Florida Gulf Coast collected 31 boards (8 offensive, 23 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Florida Gulf Coast finished shooting 66.7% at the free throw line by knocking down 12 of 18 attempts. They knocked down 9 of their 25 attempts from downtown. Regarding fouls, the Owls walked away with 17 and Florida Gulf Coast accumulated 20 fouls.

Terrell Burden is a player who had an impact in the game. He accumulated 20 points on 7 out of 8 shooting. He played 35 mins played and grabbed 3 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 87.5% from the floor and also totaled 6 assists.

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Kennesaw State will enter this matchup with a mark of 12-5 for the campaign. They are giving up possession 12.5 times per game and as a squad are committing 19.6 personal fouls per game. As a team, Kennesaw State is pulling in 41.0 rebounds per game and has tallied 273 assists this year, which ranks 54th in college hoops in terms of passing. The Owls are shooting 32.9% on shots beyond the perimeter (168 of 511) and 66.9% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 84.9 points per outing (15th in the nation) while going 44.6% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Owls are able to force 15.2 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.1 fouls. They are giving up 29.4% on three-point shots and they are 318th in D-1 in PPG from their opponents (77.3). The Owls are giving up a FG percentage of 41.8% (454 of 1,086) and they surrender 40.3 boards per contest as a unit. They are ranked 155th in college hoops in giving up assists to the opposition with 210 relinquished so far this season.

The last time they took the hardwood, the North Florida Ospreys walked away with a victory by a final of 82-74 against Jacksonville. The Ospreys were able to collect 12 defensive rebounds and 2 offensive rebounds totaling 14 for the contest. They also gave up possession 5 times, while getting 4 steals in this matchup. Jacksonville earned 21 personal fouls in this matchup which got the Ospreys to the charity stripe for a total of 25 tries. They were able to knock down 19 of the free throws for a clip of 76.0%. When talking about 3-point attempts, North Florida buried 7 out of 18 attempts (38.9%). When all was said and done, the Ospreys finished 28 for 47 from the field which had them at 59.6%. The Ospreys permitted Jacksonville to make 30 out of 62 tries from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 48.4% for this game. They wrapped up this game 21.4% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 3 of 14 and walked away from this one shooting 11 out of 16 at the charity stripe (68.8%). In relation to team rebounding, North Florida allowed Jacksonville to collect 33 in total (14 offensive).

Dorian James was important for the Ospreys in the matchup. He accumulated 25 points in his 37 minutes of playing time and tallied 3 dimes in the matchup. He buried 11 out of 13 for the contest for a field goal rate of 84.6%, and had 4 rebounds.

North Florida has a mark of 9-9 on the season. As an offensive team, the Ospreys are connecting on 42.6% from the field, which ranks them 283rd in college basketball. North Florida has earned 1,386 pts on the season (77.0 per contest) and they average 35.0 rebounds per contest. They are earning an assist 13.7 times per contest (165th in Division 1) and they are turning it over 11.3 times per game. The Ospreys commit 16.2 fouls every game and they shoot 75.6% from the free throw line.

The Ospreys defensively are ranked 253rd in D-1 in PPG allowed with 74.2. They are forcing their opponents into 11.5 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 45.3% from the floor (301st in Division 1). The North Florida defense gives up 33.3% on three-point shots (105 of 315) and opponents are connecting on 73.8% of their free throw shots. They have conceded 12.9 dimes and 37.1 rebounds per game, ranking them 192nd and 283rd in college basketball.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take North Florida

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