Western Michigan Broncos vs Central Michigan Chippewas Prediction, 2/17/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Western Michigan Broncos vs Central Michigan Chippewas

Date: Saturday, February 17, 2024

Location: McGuirk Arena in Mount Pleasant, MI

TV: ESPN+

The Western Michigan Broncos (8-16) are traveling to McGuirk Arena on Saturday where they will attempt to defeat the Central Michigan Chippewas (14-10).

The Western Michigan Broncos stepped onto the hardwood against Southern Miss and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 86-54 in their last game. In regard to fouls, the Broncos finished with 15 while Southern Miss accumulated 22 fouls. They also converted 12 of their 26 tries from distance. Southern Miss finished shooting 61.5% when shooting free throws by knocking down 8 of 13 attempts. In addition, Southern Miss grabbed 33 boards (7 offensive, 26 defensive), but didn't have a block. Southern Miss recorded 22 dimes and had 7 steals for this game. In the matter of defense, Western Michigan allowed 55.9% from the field on 33 of 59 shooting. They also distributed 9 assists in this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 12 turnovers and earning 7 steals. Regarding rebounding, they collected 26 with 7 of them being of the offensive variety. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Broncos made 21 of their 26 tries for a rate of 80.8%. Western Michigan walked away from the game with a 30.6% field goal percentage (15 out of 49) and made 3 out of their 14 3-point attempts.

Seth Hubbard is one guy who was a major factor for the matchup. He totaled 17 points on 3 out of 10 shooting. He played for 36 minutes and grabbed 3 rebounds. He finished the contest at 30.0% from the field and also distributed 1 assist.

Get all of our NCAA Basketball Best Bets Picks

Western Michigan will enter this matchup with a mark of 8-16 for the campaign. They lose possession via turnover 13.8 times per contest and as a squad they commit 17.5 fouls every game. As a team, Western Michigan is pulling in 37.2 boards per contest and has accumulated 326 dimes for the campaign, which has them ranked 177th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Broncos are connecting on 33.8% on three-point attempts (182 of 539) and 61.9% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 71.5 pts per contest (250th in college hoops) while shooting 44.5% from the floor.

On the defensive end, the Broncos are able to force 11.2 turnovers every game while drawing 17.9 fouls. They currently rank 279th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 344 surrendered for the year. The Broncos defense is allowing an opponent FG percentage of 45.1% (648 of 1,436) and they surrender 34.5 rebounds per contest as a squad. They are surrendering 35.0% on 3-point attempts and they are ranked 281st in the nation in opponents PPG (75.5).

The last time they took the court, the Central Michigan Chippewas took home the win by a final score of 58-57 against Old Dominion. In the matter of how they rebounded, Central Michigan allowed Old Dominion to get 38 in all (12 offensive). They shot 47.8% from downtown by hitting 11 of 23 and finished the game at 4 of 7 from the free throw line (57.1%). The Chippewas allowed Old Dominion to knock down 21 of 60 attempts from the floor which left them with a shooting percentage of 35.0% in the game. When all was said and done, the Chippewas finished the game shooting 20 for 53 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 37.7%. When it comes to shots from beyond the arc, Central Michigan knocked down 4 out of their 20 attempts (20.0%). They were able to make 14 of the free throws for a percentage of 63.6%. Old Dominion was called for 15 personal fouls in this game which got the Chippewas to the charity stripe for a total of 22 shots. They turned it over 10 times, while recording 6 steals in this contest. The Chippewas earned 26 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 35 for the contest.

Jemal Davis was important for the Chippewas for the matchup. He buried 4 out of 8 in this matchup for a rate of 50.0%, and earned 2 rebounds. He scored 19 points in his 27 mins on the court and had 1 assist in this contest.

Central Michigan has a win-loss record of 14-10 for the campaign. In terms of offensive execution, the Chippewas are connecting on 42.9% from the floor, which ranks them 277th in college basketball. Central Michigan has 1,602 pts on the campaign (66.8 per contest) and they pull down 35.1 rebounds per contest. They are earning an assist 11.3 times per contest (321st in the country) and they are losing possession via turnover 12.5 times per game. The Chippewas commit 16.2 personal fouls every game and they connect on 67.7% from the charity stripe.

The Central Michigan defense allows 31.2% on three-point shots (183 of 586) and their opponents are converting on 73.7% of their free throw attempts. They have relinquished 13.5 dimes and 36.7 boards per contest, which ranks 244th and 282nd in D-1. The Chippewas on defense are ranked 154th in D-1 in points given up per game with 71.0. They are able to force 11.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 42.3% from the floor (111th in college basketball).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Western Michigan

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here