UTEP Miners vs Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Prediction, 2/15/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UTEP Miners vs Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

Date: Thursday, February 15, 2024

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

TV: ESPN+

The UTEP Miners (13-11) are hitting the road to E. A. Diddle Arena on Thursday where they will take on the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (17-7).

The UTEP Miners faced off with New Mexico State and notched a win by a score of 74-49 in their last game. With respect to personal fouls, the Miners finished with 15 while New Mexico State accumulated 20 personal fouls. They also knocked down 2 of 19 attempts from beyond the perimeter. New Mexico State finished the game at 68.8% from the charity stripe by converting 11 of 16 shots. Moreover, New Mexico State pulled down 30 boards (6 offensive, 24 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. New Mexico State distributed 5 dimes and had 9 steals for the contest. Pertaining to defense, UTEP let their opponent shoot 34.6% from the floor on 18 of 52 shooting. They also dished out 14 assists for this contest in addition to forcing 19 turnovers and having 14 steals. When discussing grabbing boards, they earned 44 with 17 of them being of the offensive variety. At the free throw line, the Miners converted 12 of 21 attempts for a rate of 57.1%. UTEP wrapped up the game with a 41.3% FG percentage (26 out of 63) and buried 10 out of their 24 shots from downtown.

Tae Hardy is a guy who was a contributor for this contest. He shot 53.8% from the field and also dished out 3 assists. He played for 36 minutes and snagged 4 boards. He was able to score 21 points on 7 of 13 shooting.

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UTEP comes into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 13-11 on the campaign. They have an average of 73.5 points per contest (200th in the country) while shooting 44.8% from the floor. The Miners are connecting on 31.2% on shots from distance (134 of 430) and 68.9% from the free throw line. As a team, UTEP is pulling in 33.4 boards per game and has racked up 312 assists on the season, which is 211th in the nation in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 15.0 times per game and as a team are committing 19.9 personal fouls per game.

On the defensive end, the Miners are forcing their opponents into 19.2 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.3 fouls. They are relinquishing 30.5% on 3-point shots and they rank 96th in the nation in PPG from their opponents (68.4). The Miners defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 44.7% (561 of 1,254) and they surrender 34.5 rebounds per game as a unit. They are ranked 31st in the nation in giving up assists to the opposition with 256 surrendered on the campaign.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers took home the win by a final score of 70-59 when they faced Jacksonville State. In regard to cleaning up the glass, Western Kentucky allowed Jacksonville State to pull down 35 overall (7 on the offensive glass). They shot 7.1% from downtown by connecting on 1 of 14 and ended up going 14 of 22 at the free throw line (63.6%). The Hilltoppers permitted Jacksonville State to convert 22 out of 58 tries from the field which left them shooting 37.9% for the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Hilltoppers ended up shooting 27 out of 65 from the field which gave them a rate of 41.5%. In terms of shots from downtown, Western Kentucky knocked down 6 of 17 attempts (35.3%). They were able to bury 10 of them for a rate of 76.9%. Jacksonville State earned 16 fouls in the matchup which got the Hilltoppers to the free throw line for a total of 13 shots. They turned it over 12 times, while recording 8 steals in this contest. The Hilltoppers collected 29 defensive boards and 10 offensive boards for a total of 39 in the matchup.

Don McHenry was important for the Hilltoppers for the contest. He scored 24 points in his 33 mins of playing time, but wasn't able to tally an assist. He converted 9 of 18 for the game for a rate of 50.0%, and accounted for 1 rebound.

Western Kentucky has a mark of 17-7 for the year. The Hilltoppers commit 18.5 fouls every game and they connect on 70.1% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 13.5 times per game (163rd in the country) and they are turning it over 14.0 times per game. Western Kentucky has scored 1,927 points this season (80.3 per contest) and they average 40.1 rebounds per game. As an offense, the Hilltoppers are shooting 46.6% from the field, which has them ranked 81st in the nation.

The Hilltoppers on the defensive side of the court are 251st in D-1 in points given up per game with 74.2. They are forcing their opponents into 14.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 41.0% from the floor (46th in college hoops). The Western Kentucky defense allows 29.8% on shots from beyond the perimeter (183 of 614) and their opponents are converting on 71.0% of their free throw attempts. They have conceded 12.9 dimes and 37.0 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 185th and 297th in college hoops.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Western Kentucky

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