Kent State Golden Flashes vs Northern Illinois Huskies Prediction, 1/16/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Kent State Golden Flashes vs Northern Illinois Huskies

Date: Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Location: NIU Convocation Center in DeKalb, IL

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: Kent State (-4)

The Kent State Golden Flashes (8-8) are hitting the road to NIU Convocation Center on Tuesday where they will go up against the Northern Illinois Huskies (6-10). Kent State opens this game as -4-point favorites. The total has been set at 149.5.

The Kent State Golden Flashes stepped onto the hardwood against Central Michigan and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 77-62 in their last game. When talking about fouls, the Golden Flashes ended up finishing with 14 and Central Michigan racked up 11 fouls. They knocked down 9 of their 23 attempts from long range. Central Michigan ended up shooting 80.0% when shooting free throws by making 8 of 10 tries. Moreover, Central Michigan collected 34 boards (6 offensive, 28 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Central Michigan totaled 18 dimes and had 4 steals in the matchup. When talking about defending, Kent State allowed their opponent to shoot 56.6% from the field on 30 of 53 shooting. They also distributed 12 assists in the matchup as well as forcing the other team into 7 turnovers and earning 2 steals. Pertaining to grabbing rebounds, they collected 27 with 13 of them being of the offensive variety. At the free throw line, the Golden Flashes made 9 of 14 shots for a rate of 64.3%. Kent State wrapped up the game having earned a 31.8% FG percentage (21 of 66) and made 11 of 28 3-point attempts.

Voncameron Davis is a guy who was important in this game. He left the arena with 20 points on 7 of 17 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 33 minutes played and grabbed 5 rebounds. He finished the game at 41.2% from the field and earned 2 dimes.

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Kent State enters this game with a record of 8-8 on the campaign. They currently have an average of 77.9 points per game (97th in D-1) while connecting on 44.7% from the floor. The Golden Flashes are shooting 35.7% on shots beyond the perimeter (128 of 359) and 77.6% from the charity stripe. As a team, Kent State is snagging 34.9 boards per contest and has earned 215 assists so far this year, which ranks 234th in the nation in terms of passing. They are losing possession via turnover 13.1 times per game and as a basketball team they are committing 17.8 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end, the Golden Flashes are forcing their opponents into 14.8 turnovers every game and they draw 18.6 fouls. They currently rank 239th in college basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 227 surrendered this season. The Golden Flashes are allowing a shooting percentage of 45.6% (418 of 916) and they relinquish 33.4 rebounds per contest as a group. They surrender 34.6% from 3-point land while they are 250th in the nation in PPG allowed (73.8).

In their last game, the Northern Illinois Huskies took a defeat with a final score of 83-72 against Bowling Green. The Huskies earned 21 defensive boards and 4 offensive boards for a total of 25 for this game. They gave up possession of the ball 9 times, while recording 6 steals for this contest. Bowling Green was called for 22 fouls in this matchup which got the Huskies to the free throw line for 28 tries. They were able to bury 19 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 67.9%. When talking about shooting from beyond the arc, Northern Illinois knocked down 7 out of their 23 attempts (30.4%). When the final whistle blew, the Huskies went 23 out of 54 from the field which gave them a rate of 42.6%. The Huskies permitted Bowling Green to convert 28 of 60 tries from the floor which left them with a rate of 46.7% in this matchup. They went 20.0% from behind the 3-point line via 3 of 15 and walked away from this one shooting 24 of 33 at the free throw line (72.7%). In regard to how they rebounded, Northern Illinois permitted Bowling Green to collect 36 in all (9 on the offensive side).

David Coit pitched in for the Huskies in the game. He knocked down 9 out of 19 in this game for a rate of 47.4%, and had 2 rebounds. He accumulated 27 points in his 37 mins on the hardwood and accumulated 1 assist for this game.

Northern Illinois has a mark of 6-10 so far this season. The Huskies are responsible for committing 17.8 fouls every game while shooting 66.3% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 10.9 times per contest (335th in the nation) and they cough up possession 12.8 times per contest. Northern Illinois has tallied 1,238 points for the year (77.4 per game) and they pull down 35.9 rebounds per contest. As an offense, the Huskies are connecting on 46.0% from the floor, which ranks 125th in the nation.

The Northern Illinois defense surrenders 34.8% on three-point shots (119 of 342) and opponents are converting on 69.3% of their foul shots. They relinquish 14.5 assists and 38.5 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 302nd and 318th in Division 1. The Huskies on the defensive end are ranked 341st in D-1 in points given up per game with 79.4. They are able to force 11.1 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 44.4% from the floor (255th in college basketball).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Kent State (-4)

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