Ball State vs Kent State Odds, Lines & Picks (Jan. 20)

• Kent State is a 9.5-point home favorite over Ball State on Friday night in a Mid-American Conference game
• Kent State is on a nine-game winning streak and Ball State has won nine of its last ten
• A look at the Ball State vs Kent State odds and prediction can be found below

Two red-hot Mid-American Conference teams meet when Ball State visits Kent State at 6:30 p.m. ET Friday at the Memorial A&C Center in Kent, Ohio.

Kent State (15-3, 8-0 home, 5-0 MAC) ran its winning streak to nine games Tuesday with a 77-63 win at Eastern Michigan. Ball State (13-5, 3-3 road, 4-1 MAC) has won two in a row and nine of their last 10 games, including slipping past visiting Western Michigan 71-70 on Tuesday.

The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.

Ball State vs Kent State Odds

Odds as of January 19th at FanDuel. Claim one of this week’s FanDuel promo codes.

Kent State is favored by 9.5 points and a -490 pick on the moneyline in the college basketball odds, giving it an implied win probability of 83.05%.

Ball State Betting Outlook

Junior guard Jarron “Boogie” Coleman has made a big difference in his Ball State homecoming. He is averaging 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists a game.

Coleman was the MAC Freshman of the Year during the 2019-20 season then transferred to Missouri after the 2020-21 season. After one season with the Tigers, he returned to Ball State.

In Tuesday night’s win over Western Michigan, Coleman stuffed the stat sheet with 22 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and four steals.

Don't let the Cards get hot 🤫🔥@Jarron_coleman gives @BallStateMBB a 62-55 lead with just over 6 minutes left in the game 🏀

🎥: @ashby_media

📺: https://t.co/A2gi6VuUWT (ESPN+)#BallState #ChirpChirp #WeFly #SportsMediaMajor pic.twitter.com/MyKzREfoFD

— Ball State Sports Link (@bsusportslink) January 18, 2023

Sophomore forward Mickey Pearson Jr. had a three-point play with 35 seconds remaining that put Ball State ahead. That turned out to be the last points of the game.

Sophomore guard Jaylin Sellers has a 13.6 scoring average and sophomore center Payton Sparks is averaging 13.1 points and 8.1 rebounds a game. Sparks, last season’s MAC Freshman of the Year, is fourth in the conference in rebounding.

Sparks had 14 points and eight rebounds Tuesday before fouling out. Senior guard Demarius Jacobs added 10 points and three assists. The Cardinals held Western Michigan to 38.6% (22 of 57) shooting.

Jacobs is having a fine season with averages of 12.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and a MAC-best 1.6.

Ball State is 33^rd in the nation in field goal shooting with a 47.8 percentage and its 37.2 three-point percentage is 48^th.

Kent State Betting Outlook

Kent State’s three losses this season have been to teams currently ranked in the top 25 – Charleston, Houston and Gonzaga.

Senior guard Sincere Carry leads the Golden Flashes. He is averaging 17.1 points, 4.8 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.9 steals a game. He is second in the conference in assists and third in steals.

Another senior guard, Malique Jacobs, tops the nation in steals with a 3.1 average. He also has averages of 12.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists.

Jacobs and Carry spearhead a defense that is 19^th in the nation in field goal percentage allowed (39.0), 25^th in scoring (62.2) and 46^th in three-point percentage (30.2).

Malique Jacobs with the slam‼️ @KentStMBB pic.twitter.com/c4BkGFrRYQ

— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) January 22, 2022

A transfer from Ball State, senior forward Miryne Thomas is scoring 11.6 points and pulling down 6.1 rebounds a game.

Carry, Jacobs, and sophomore guard Jalen Sullinger all had 14 points in the win over Eastern Michigan on Tuesday. Carry also dished five assists.

Junior guard Giovanni Santiago chipped in with 11 points and Thomas contributed 10 points and eight rebounds.

Kent State shot just 25.9% (7 of 27) on three-pointers but held Eastern Michigan to 21.1% (4 of 19) from beyond the arc. The Golden Flashes committed just nine turnovers.

Kent State is the 37^th-best free throw shooting team in Division I at 75.4%.

Ball State vs Kent State Prediction

This is the first time the teams have met this season after Kent State won both matchups in 2021-22, including 93-82 at home. Carry erupted for 42 points in that game while Jacobs had a triple-double with 17 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Kent State is awfully good, but Ball State is playing well, too. The Cardinals look like the way to go, getting this many points.

Pick: Ball State +9.5 (-112)

Season record: 20-15 (+3.5 units) ATS, 1-6 (-4.5 units) ML