Cleveland State vs Northern Kentucky Prediction 2/5/25 College Basketball Picks
Northern Kentucky (10-13) vs Cleveland State (17-6)
Game Info: Wednesday, February 5, 2025 at 7:00 pm (Truist Arena)
Betting Odds: Northern Kentucky +1.5 -- Over/Under: 132.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
Where to Watch: ESPN+
The Cleveland State Vikings and the Northern Kentucky Norse meet Wednesday in college basketball action from BB&T Arena. Here’s a Cleveland State vs Northern Kentucky prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Cleveland State vs Northern Kentucky pick. We will examine:
The Cleveland State Vikings' recent form and player performance
The Northern Kentucky Norse's recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Cleveland State Vikings
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Northern Kentucky Norse
Recent betting trends in games played between Cleveland State and Northern Kentucky
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Cleveland State vs Northern Kentucky game
Cleveland State Vikings Betting Preview
The Vikings didn’t start out the season very well, but to their credit, they’ve gotten it going since early December. Cleveland State fell to Michigan, Kanas State, Minnesota, Kent State, Morehead State, and Milwaukee during a shaky 4-6 opening run, but it’s been all victories since then. Those wins have come courtesy of Green Bay, Brescia, Oakland, Midway University, Wright State, IUPUI, Robert Morris, Youngstown State, Northern Kentucky, IUPUI again, Detroit, Green Bay, and Fort Wayne in succession. The result so far has been a 17-6 overall record for Cleveland State through the first 23 games of the 2024-25 season.
In the Fort Wayne matchup last Thursday, the Vikings entered the second half with a 35-25 advantage. Cleveland State kept the pace on a 33-33 run from there and finished off the win 68-58 in the end. Leading the team with 20 points in 32 minutes off the bench was Chase Robinson, who also notched six rebounds and a steal. Tevin Smith added 16 points with four rebounds, and Dylan Arnett had 15 points with 15 rebounds in 37 minutes of action.
Northern Kentucky Norse Betting Preview
Over on the Northern Kentucky side, they had a good run going in December/January but haven’t looked great since then. The Norse lost to Florida State, Purdue, Nicholls State, Cincinnati, Charleston, and Akron in their first eight outings, then beat IUPUI, Cumberland KY, Norfolk State, Detroit, South Carolina State, Fort Wayne, and Green Bay in the next eight outings. Following losses to Youngstown State, Oakland, Cleveland State, Wright State, Milwaukee, and Detroit in succession, the Norse finally got another win over Oakland for a 10-13 overall record through their first 23 outings of the season.
Matched up against Oakland on Saturday, the Norse entered the second half on a one-point deficit. Northern Kentucky caught fire from there on a 45-35 run and took the victory in the end 84-75. Dan Gherezgher was the team’s top scorer with 22 points four rebounds and six assists. Randall Pettus came off the bench for 14 points, three boards, and three steals in 21 minutes, while Keeyan Itejere had 12 points with four rebounds and a pair of blocks.
Why the Northern Kentucky Norse will win
- Northern Kentucky has won each of its last 14 Wednesday night games at Truist Arena.
- Cleveland State has lost each of its last four games at Truist Arena.
Why the Cleveland State Vikings will win
- Cleveland State has won each of its last 13 games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
- Northern Kentucky has lost each of its last five night games against the Horizon League.
- Cleveland State has won the first half in 10 of its last 13 games.
Cleveland State vs Northern Kentucky Prediction
I’ll lean toward Cleveland State. The Vikings took out a decent Fort Wayne team in their last outing thanks to 46.9 percent shooting and a 43-31 rebounding edge. The turnovers did get a little sloppy (14 for 13 Mastodons points), however the 35.4 percent shooting allowed helped muffle Fort Wayne’s chances. During this 13-game win streak, the Vikings have hit 68 or more points in all but two games, so they’re scoring quite well these days.
The last time these teams met up was during a 76-58 home win for the Vikings on January 15. The Vikings shot a nice 48.4 percent from the field with a 35-31 rebounding edge in that one but really benefitted from 23 points off 18 Norse turnovers. Cleveland State won’t be able to rely on mistakes in the road rematch, but if they can keep the scoring consistent I think the Vikings will be fine.
Andrew’s Pick Cleveland State Vikings -1.5
AUTHOR: Andrew Jett

Follow Andrew Jett on Twitter @PickDawgzAndrew