Murray State Racers vs Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Prediction, 12/14/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Murray State Racers vs Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

Date: Saturday, December 14, 2024

Location: E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, KY

TV: ESPN+

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (6-3) will go up against the Murray State Racers (6-2) at E.A. Diddle Arena on Saturday.

The Murray State Racers faced off with SE Missouri State and took home the win by a score of 73-53 in their last game. In the matter of fouls, the Racers ended up finishing with 15 while SE Missouri State finished the game with 19 fouls. They buried 4 of 13 attempts from distance. SE Missouri State ended up going 63.6% when shooting free throws by converting 7 of 11 attempts. Furthermore, SE Missouri State pulled down 20 boards (4 offensive, 16 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. SE Missouri State earned 8 assists and had 2 steals in the matchup. When talking about the defense, Murray State allowed 40.4% from the floor on 21 out of 52 shooting. They also doled out 10 assists for this game while forcing 11 turnovers and having 5 steals. When talking about rebounding, they earned 34 with 13 of them being offensive. At the charity stripe, the Racers converted 12 of 20 attempts for a rate of 60.0%. Murray State wrapped up the contest having earned a 48.1% FG percentage (26 out of 54) and made 9 of 18 three-point shots.

JaCobi Wood is one player who was a contributor in this matchup. He ended up with 23 points on 8 out of 15 shooting. He saw the court for 32 minutes played and grabbed 9 rebounds. He finished the game at 53.3% from the floor and recorded 2 dimes.

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Murray State comes into this one with a win-loss mark of 6-2 so far this season. They average 79.8 points per game (98th in Division 1) while going 50.0% from the field. The Racers are shooting 41.1% on shots beyond the perimeter (67 of 163) and 68.9% from the free throw line. As a team, Murray State is pulling down 37.0 rebounds per contest and has earned 112 dimes so far this season, which has them ranked 313th in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession via turnover 12.1 times per game and as a unit they commit 16.8 fouls per game.

When they are on defense, the Racers are forcing their opponents into 12.4 turnovers per contest and they draw 18.9 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 1st in the nation in giving up assists to the opposition with 59 conceded for the campaign. The Racers defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 41.1% (187 of 455) and they concede 31.0 boards per game as a team. They concede 26.1% on shots from beyond the arc and they rank 26th in D-1 in points per game from their opponents (63.1).

For their last game, the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers took home the win by a final score of 84-60 when they played Tennessee State. In reference to attacking the glass, Western Kentucky permitted Tennessee State to collect 35 overall (11 offensive). They finished 22.2% from behind the 3-point line by connecting on 6 out of 27 and walked away from this one shooting 16 of 18 from the free throw line (88.9%). The Hilltoppers allowed Tennessee State to convert 19 out of their 60 tries from the floor which left them with a rate of 31.7% in this matchup. When this game wrapped up, the Hilltoppers walked away from this one shooting 29 out of 61 from the field which gave them a percentage of 47.5%. With respect to three-point shots, Western Kentucky knocked down 10 of 26 tries (38.5%). They were able to knock down 16 of those for a percentage of 80.0%. Tennessee State had 18 fouls for the contest which took the Hilltoppers to the free throw line for 20 shots. They coughed up the ball 9 times, while recording 12 steals in the game. The Hilltoppers were able to pull down 25 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive boards for a total of 30 in this contest.

Khristian Lander was important for the Hilltoppers in the game. He buried 7 of 12 for the game for a field goal rate of 58.3%, and accumulated 3 rebounds. He racked up 19 points in his 25 minutes on the court and had 4 dimes for the matchup.

Western Kentucky has a record of 6-3 on the season. The Hilltoppers are committing 18.2 personal fouls every game while shooting 72.6% from the charity stripe. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 13.3 times per contest (233rd in the nation) and they are turning it over 11.8 times per contest. Western Kentucky has scored 726 pts this season (80.7 per game) and they pull in 39.1 rebounds per game. When it comes to executing on offense, the Hilltoppers are shooting 44.2% from the field, which is ranked 221st in Division 1.

The Western Kentucky defense gives up 28.6% on shots from beyond the arc (71 of 248) and their opponents are connecting on 75.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They give up 13.8 dimes and 41.1 boards per contest, which is ranked 239th and 353rd in the nation. The Hilltoppers on the defensive end are ranked 235th in college hoops in PPG surrendered with 73.1. They are forcing 14.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 38.8% from the field (42nd in the country).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Western Kentucky

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