| MATCHUP | Evansville Purple Aces | Northern Iowa Panthers |
|---|---|---|
| Team Records | 5-17 | 14-9 |
| Where | McLeod Center, Cedar Falls, IA | |
| When | Saturday, January 31, 2026 | |
| Time | 04:00 PM EST | |
| TV | ESPN+ | |
The Evansville Purple Aces and the Northern Iowa Panthers meet Saturday in college basketball action from McLeod Center in Cedar Falls. Here’s an Evansville vs Northern Iowa prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Evansville vs Northern Iowa pick. We will examine the recent form and player performances for both teams, as well as the recent betting trends and streaks pertaining to this matchup. As we conclude, we will tie it all together with a summary that produces a sensible pick for a favorable betting outcome in this game.
Evansville Purple Aces Betting Preview
Evansville limped to a pretty spotty 4-5 record over their first nine games this year. The next eight were losses to Western Kentucky, Drake, Belmont, Notre Dame, Bradley, Illinois State, Northern Iowa and Murray State, then a win over Indiana State. After losses to Bradley and UIC, the Purple Aces were left with a 5-15 overall record in the books across their first 20 games of the year.
On Wednesday versus Drake, the Aces were in a good spot by halftime, powering out a 36-30 advantage in the early part of the game. Evansville was outscored 52-42 the rest of the way however, and ended up falling 82-78 in the end. Leading the team in scoring was Leif Moller with 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Bryce Quinet had 16 points with three assists as well.
Northern Iowa Panthers Betting Preview
Over on the Northern Iowa side, they were able to win 12 of their first 15 games this year in a very nice start, losing to only Tulsa, Wichita State and Saint Mary’s in that time. The Panthers would then lose to Belmont, Bradley, UIC, Valparaiso and Illinois State before finally stopping the bleeding versus Murray State. Over the first 21 games of the year that made for a 13-8 run overall.
Matched up against Southern Illinois on Wednesday, the Panthers struggled in the first half and went into the locker room with a 27-19 deficit. Northern Iowa didn’t end up getting any closer than that in the second, riding a 38-31 run on the way to a 65-50 loss on the road. Will Hornseth led the team on 14 points with three boards and Ben Schwieger had 10 points with seven rebounds and two assists.
Evansville Purple Aces @ Northern Iowa Panthers Betting Trends: January 31, 2026
Why the Northern Iowa Panthers will win
- Northern Iowa has won each of its last 11 games against Evansville at McLeod Center.
- Evansville has lost 13 of its last 14 games against Conference opponents.
- The home team has won the first half in five of Northern Iowa’s last six games.
Why the Evansville Purple Aces will win
- Northern Iowa has lost six of its last seven games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
Evansville vs Northern Iowa Prediction
I’ll lean toward Northern Iowa I suppose. The Panthers really need a good bounce-back after a pretty miserable offensive outing in the loss to Southern Illinois this week, though. Northern Iowa shot just 40.4 percent from the field, 23.5 percent (4-of-17) from outside and 61.5 percent (8-of-13) from the line alongside 16 turnovers in that one. The Panthers have hit the skids lately on a 1-6 run over their last seven games.
These teams last met up back on January 4 in a 62-48 road win for the Panthers. In that one Northern Iowa shot 45.8 percent from both the field and 3-point range (11-of-24) alongside a 29-23 rebounding edge. The Panthers did get outmuscled in the paint 30-20 however, and coughed up 15 turnovers. There’s some room for improvement but this is one Northern Iowa should control. I’m probably not touching it, though.