Northern Illinois (4-9) vs Kent State (9-4)
Game Info: Tuesday, January 7, 2025 at 7:00 pm (NIU Convocation Center)
The Line: Betting Odds: Northern Illinois +13 — Over/Under: 136.5
The Kent State Golden Flashes and the Northern Illinois Huskies meet Tuesday in college basketball action from the NIU Convocation Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Kent State vs. Northern Illinois prediction.
Kent State Recap
The Kent State Golden Flashes come into this game looking to bounce back from a 75-67 loss to Ball State last time out to fall to 9-4 overall this season. After this game, Kent State will continue on the road to take on the Buffalo Bulls.
Golden Flashes Looking For Consistency
VonCameron Davis leads the Golden Flashes in scoring with 15.3 PPG along with 3.6 RPG and Jalen Sullinger has 10.7 PPG with 2.2 APG while Morgan Safford has 10.6 PPG and 6.1 RPG to cap off the group of double-digit scorers for Kent State up to this point in the year. Cli’Ron Hornbeak has 8 PPG with a team-high 7 RPG to lead the Golden Flashes on the glass. Cian Medley also has a team-high 3.2 APG to lead the Golden Flashes on the glass so far this season. As a team, Kent State is averaging 69.4 PPG on 39.9% shooting from the field, 29.1% from three, and 75.7% from the foul line up to this point in the year.
Why the Kent State Golden Flashes will win
- Northern Illinois has lost seven of its last eight night games against the Mid-American Conference at NIU Convocation Center.
- Kent State has won seven of its last eight night games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
Northern Illinois Recap
The Northern Illinois Huskies will be looking to bounce back from a 75-71 loss to Eastern Michigan last time out, falling to 4-9 on the year as a result. After this game, NIU will head on the road to take on Ohio.
Huskies Looking For Rebound Performance
Quentin Jones leads the Huskies in scoring with 16.3 PPG along with 3.8 RPG and 2.8 APG while James Dent Jr. has 12.1 PPG with team-highs of 5.5 RPG and 2.9 APG to lead the Huskies in rebounding and assists up to this point in the year. Ethan Butler’s chipped in 11.1 PPG and 4.4 RPG in 8 games played so far and Quaran McPherson has 10.4 PPG with 4.1 RPG to cap off the group of double-digit scorers for Northern Illinois up to this point in the year. As a team, Northern Illinois is averaging 72.6 PPG on 41.4% shooting from the field, 32.3% from behind the arc, and 74.2% from the foul line so far this season.
Why the Northern Illinois Huskies will win
- The home team has won each of Northern Illinois’ last eight games.
- Kent State has lost five of its last six night games against the Mid-American Conference.
Total Points Facts
- Seven of Northern Illinois’ last eight games have produced a total of 141+ points.
- Each of Kent State’s last five night games has produced a total of 133 or fewer points.
Kent State vs. Northern Illinois Prediction
I’m on the under here. Historically, Kent State’s been able to pile points onto Northern Illinois in bunches, but watching Kent State lose outright in their conference opener really gave me pause about the state of this Golden Flashes offense. I still think Kent State’s defense shows up though, that’s why I’m not necessarily backing Northern Illinois here as the Huskies aren’t good themselves and it wouldn’t surprise me if Kent State blew out NIU with defense and a reasonable offensive showing. I think this total’s just too high though, so I’m backing the under in this one.