MTSU Blue Raiders vs Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Prediction, 2/15/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: MTSU Blue Raiders vs Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

Date: Saturday, February 15, 2025

Location: E.A. Diddle Arena in West Lafayette, IN

TV: ESPN+

E.A. Diddle Arena is the site where the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (14-10) will try to defeat the MTSU Blue Raiders (16-8) on Saturday.

The MTSU Blue Raiders faced Kennesaw State and took home the win by a score of 76-75 in their last game. In regard to fouls, the Blue Raiders ended up with 17 and Kennesaw State had 18 fouls. They converted 5 of their 18 shots from three-point range. Kennesaw State walked away from this one shooting 80.0% when shooting free throws by making 16 of their 20 attempts. In addition, Kennesaw State pulled down 31 boards (7 offensive, 24 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Kennesaw State recorded 13 dimes and had 7 steals in this matchup. With regard to defending, MTSU allowed 43.5% from the floor on 27 of 62 shooting. They also recorded 17 assists in this game while forcing 9 turnovers and having 3 steals. In regard to rebounding, they collected a total of 31 with 3 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Blue Raiders converted 16 of 21 shots for a percentage of 76.2%. MTSU finished having earned a 50.0% FG percentage (26 of 52) and knocked down 8 of their 21 3-point shots.

Jestin Porter is one player who came through in this contest. He ended up walking away with 22 points on 8 out of 16 shooting. He was on the court for 40 mins but concluded the game with no rebounds. He finished 50.0% from the field and dished out 2 dimes.

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MTSU will enter this matchup with a win-loss mark of 16-8 this season. They are averaging 75.8 points per outing (138th in the nation) while hitting 45.7% from the field. The Blue Raiders are connecting on 32.3% on three-point attempts (175 of 541) and 66.9% from the charity stripe. As a unit, MTSU is snagging 37.8 rebounds per game and is sitting with 299 dimes this year, which is 291st in D-1 in terms of passing. They cough up possession 11.3 times per contest and as a squad are committing 17.2 fouls per contest.

Defensively, the Blue Raiders are forcing 12.0 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 16.2 personal fouls. They are 105th in college in allowing assists with 301 surrendered this season. The Blue Raiders defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 42.0% (605 of 1,439) and they concede 35.5 rebounds per contest as a group. They give up 29.7% on 3-point shots and they are 149th in college in points per game allowed (70.7).

When they last stepped on the court, the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 85-83 against Jacksonville State. The Hilltoppers were able to snag 23 defensive boards and 3 offensive rebounds totaling 26 for the game. They also gave up possession 10 times, while getting 8 steals in this matchup. Jacksonville State earned 10 personal fouls for the game which took the Hilltoppers to the charity stripe for a total of 13 attempts. They were able to make 13 of the free throws for a clip of 100.0%. Concerning shots from beyond the arc, Western Kentucky made 12 of their 24 attempts (50.0%). When the final whistle blew, the Hilltoppers finished 29 for 56 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 51.8%. The Hilltoppers permitted Jacksonville State to knock down 30 out of their 60 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 50.0% for this contest. They went 36.0% from distance by going 9 of 25 and ended up shooting 16 out of 19 from the charity stripe (84.2%). With respect to team rebounding, Western Kentucky allowed Jacksonville State to pull down 30 in all (7 offensive).

Khristian Lander ended up being a factor for the Hilltoppers for this game. He knocked down 9 of 13 for the contest giving him a field goal percentage of 69.2%, and tallied 4 rebounds. He recorded 30 points in his 34 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist in the game.

Western Kentucky has a mark of 14-10 so far this year. When it comes to offensive execution, the Hilltoppers are hitting on 43.5% from the floor, which has them ranked 252nd in D-1. Western Kentucky has scored 1,867 points so far this year (77.8 per contest) and they average 37.1 boards per contest. They are dishing out assists 12.3 times per contest (285th in the nation) and they lose possession via turnover 11.5 times per game. The Hilltoppers commit 18.0 personal fouls per game and they hit 73.9% from the free throw line.

The Western Kentucky defense allows 31.1% on shots from behind the 3-point line (201 of 647) and their opponents are converting on 72.9% of their shots from the free throw line. They have given up 13.7 dimes and 40.1 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 239th and 359th in college. The Hilltoppers on the defensive end are ranked 280th in the country in points given up per game with 75.2. They are forcing 13.8 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 41.3% from the field (67th in the country).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Western Kentucky

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