Central Michigan Chippewas vs Akron Zips Prediction, 1/7/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Central Michigan Chippewas vs Akron Zips

Date: Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Location: James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Central Michigan Chippewas (6-7) are en route to James A. Rhodes Arena on Tuesday where they will play the Akron Zips (8-5).

The Central Michigan Chippewas stepped onto the hardwood against Ohio and took a loss by a score of 57-55 in their last game. Regarding fouls, the Chippewas ended up finishing with 12 and Ohio totaled 13 fouls. They buried 5 of 23 attempts from 3-point land. Ohio finished the game shooting 40.0% at the charity stripe by making 4 of 10 attempts. Moreover, Ohio collected 25 boards (6 offensive, 19 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Ohio totaled 14 dimes and had 10 steals for the contest. In relation to defense, Central Michigan allowed the other team to go 43.6% from the floor on 24 of 55 shooting. They also doled out 5 assists in the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and getting 8 steals. Regarding rebounding, they earned 36 with 11 of them being on the offensive end. At the charity stripe, the Chippewas buried 13 of 16 shots for a percentage of 81.3%. Central Michigan walked away from the contest having earned a 32.8% field goal percentage (20 out of 61) and buried 2 of 15 shots from distance.

Jakobi Heady is a guy who played a role in the game. He was able to score 15 points on 5 out of 17 shooting. He played for 37 mins played and collected 8 boards. He finished the game at 29.4% from the field and recorded 2 assists.

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Central Michigan heads into this contest with a mark of 6-7 for the season. They turn the ball over 14.4 times per contest and as a team they are committing 16.0 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Central Michigan is snagging 37.8 boards per game and has 185 dimes on the season, which ranks 277th in the country in terms of passing the rock. The Chippewas are shooting 31.0% on shots from 3-point land (91 of 294) and 69.7% from the free throw line. They are averaging 73.4 pts per game (237th in the country) while hitting 45.1% from the field.

On defense, the Chippewas are able to force 13.3 turnovers per game while drawing 17.0 fouls. They concede 28.8% on shots from downtown and they are 142nd in college in PPG allowed (69.7). The Chippewas defensively are giving up a field goal percentage of 41.5% (321 of 774) and they surrender 32.5 rebounds per game as a team. They currently rank 131st in college hoops in giving up assists with 179 surrendered for the season.

The last time they took the court, the Akron Zips took home the win by a final score of 71-68 against Bowling Green. The Zips were able to collect 25 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards for a total of 33 in this contest. They gave up possession of the ball 12 times, while getting 7 steals in this matchup. Bowling Green was called for 16 personal fouls for the game which got the Zips to the charity stripe for 9 attempts. They were able to convert 7 of the free throws for a clip of 77.8%. Pertaining to 3-point shots, Akron made 12 of 42 attempts (28.6%). When the final whistle blew, the Zips ended up shooting 26 for 67 from the field which gave them a rate of 38.8%. The Zips allowed Bowling Green to convert 23 of their 66 attempts from the floor which had them sitting at 34.8% in this game. They wrapped up this game 32.0% from three-point range by going 8 of 25 and finished the contest at 14 out of 21 at the free throw line (66.7%). In regard to how they rebounded, Akron permitted Bowling Green to get 43 in total (13 on the offensive side).

Sharron Young pitched in for the Zips for the contest. He had 17 points in his 18 minutes on the hardwood and tallied 1 assist in the game. He made 6 of 10 for this game giving him a rate of 60.0%, and totaled 4 rebounds.

Akron has a mark of 8-5 on the year. As an offense, the Zips are shooting 42.6% from the field, which has them ranked 294th in D-1. Akron has totaled 1,039 points for the year (79.9 per game) and they pull down 40.5 rebounds per contest. They are assisting teammates 17.2 times per contest (34th in college hoops) and they are turning it over 12.7 times per contest. The Zips are committing 17.4 fouls per game while shooting 73.7% from the charity stripe.

The Zips defensively are ranked 230th in college hoops in points allowed per contest with 72.8. They are able to force 14.8 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 43.2% from the field (191st in college). The Akron defense gives up 33.0% on shots from beyond the arc (97 of 294) and opponents are converting on 66.9% of their shots from the free throw line. They have relinquished 12.1 assists and 38.8 boards per game, which has them ranked 111th and 339th in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Central Michigan

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