Ball State Cardinals vs Ohio Bobcats Prediction, 1/14/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Ball State Cardinals vs Ohio Bobcats

Date: Tuesday, January 14, 2025

Location: Convocation Center (OH) in Athens, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Ohio Bobcats (9-6) will play the Ball State Cardinals (8-7) at Convocation Center (OH) on Tuesday.

The Ball State Cardinals faced Bowling Green and notched a win by a score of 91-69 in their last game. Ball State walked away from the contest with a 58.9% FG percentage (33 of 56) and converted 7 of their 17 three-point shots. From the free throw line, the Cardinals made 18 of their 22 shots for a percentage of 81.8%. In regard to rebounding, they compiled 34 with 5 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 21 assists for the game in addition to forcing the opposition into 12 turnovers and earning 4 steals. With respect to defense, Ball State let their opponent shoot 40.3% from the field on 25 of 62 shooting. Bowling Green distributed 10 assists and had 7 steals in the game. On top of that, Bowling Green had 27 rebounds (10 offensive, 17 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Bowling Green finished shooting 52.4% from the charity stripe by knocking down 11 of 21 tries. They knocked down 8 of their 27 attempts from distance. When it comes to personal fouls, the Cardinals walked away with 17 and Bowling Green accounted for 20 personal fouls.

Payton Sparks is a player who was a factor for this game. He finished shooting 72.7% from the field but had no assists when the time ran out. He played for 24 minutes and pulled down 13 rebounds. He finished with 19 points on 8 out of 11 shooting.

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Ball State heads into this game with a win-loss mark of 8-7 so far this year. They are losing possession via turnover 12.3 times per contest and as a squad are committing 16.7 fouls per game. As a unit, Ball State is pulling in 36.6 rebounds per game and has accounted for 197 assists this year, which has them ranked 309th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Cardinals are hitting 33.8% on shots from downtown (110 of 325) and 70.2% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 76.3 points per outing (154th in D-1) while shooting 45.8% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Cardinals are forcing 11.1 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.3 fouls. They currently rank 112th in college in giving up assists with 199 relinquished on the campaign. The Cardinals are giving up a field goal percentage of 41.3% (365 of 884) and they surrender 34.7 rebounds per game as a unit. They relinquish 30.6% on three-point shots and they rank 165th in college hoops in PPG from their opponents (70.8).

When they last stepped on the court, the Ohio Bobcats went home victorious with a score of 108-70 when they faced Northern Illinois. Regarding how they cleaned up the glass, Ohio allowed Northern Illinois to collect 22 in total (2 on the offensive glass). They finished 33.3% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 10 of 30 and walked away from this one shooting 8 of 18 at the charity stripe (44.4%). The Bobcats allowed Northern Illinois to bury 26 out of 67 attempts from the field which had them shooting 38.8% for the matchup. Overall, the Bobcats finished shooting 37 out of 60 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 61.7%. In regard to shots from beyond the perimeter, Ohio made 17 out of their 31 tries (54.8%). They were able to knock down 17 of those for a rate of 68.0%. Northern Illinois earned 22 personal fouls for this contest which took the Bobcats to the charity stripe for a total of 25 attempts. They also gave up possession of the ball 15 times, while recording 3 steals in this game. The Bobcats earned 36 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds totaling 42 for this game.

AJ Clayton ended up being a factor for the Bobcats in the game. He converted 10 out of 12 for the contest giving him a rate of 83.3%, and accounted for 4 rebounds. He had 31 points in his 18 mins on the hardwood and accumulated 2 dimes for this contest.

Ohio has a record of 9-6 for the year. On the offensive side of the court, the Bobcats are connecting on 47.8% from the floor, which ranks them 59th in the nation. Ohio has totaled 1,212 pts for the season (80.8 per contest) and they pull in 35.1 boards per contest. They are earning an assist 16.0 times per contest (74th in college) and they turn it over 12.3 times per game. The Bobcats commit 17.7 fouls per contest and they connect on 74.1% from the charity stripe.

The Bobcats on the defensive side of the court are 259th in Division 1 in points per game surrendered with 74.0. They are forcing their opponents into 13.7 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 44.2% from the floor (237th in the nation). The Ohio defense allows 37.9% on three-point shots (113 of 298) and their opponents are knocking down 66.3% of their foul shots. They allow 13.2 assists and 35.0 boards on a nightly basis, which is 197th and 222nd in D-1.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Ohio

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