Youngstown State Penguins (17-6) vs. PFW Mastodons (13-8)
February 4, 2024 2:00 pm EDT
The Line: PFW Mastodons +3; Over/Under: 154.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Youngstown State Penguins and the Fort Wayne Mastodons meet Sunday in college basketball action from Gates Sports Center. Youngstown State is currently 17-6 overall following a win over Wright State on Thursday. As for Fort Wayne, they lost to Milwaukee in their last game, dropping to 14-8 so far. Let’s get into our Youngstown State vs. Fort Wayne prediction. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Youngstown State Penguins
The Penguins only lost to Louisiana, Michigan and Dayton over their first 13 games this year. Youngstown State would fall to Oakland, Northern Kentucky and Oakland again during a 3-3 run, but recovered with wins over Detroit, IUPUI, Northern Kentucky and Wright State in the next four.
In the rematch with Wright State on Thursday, the Penguins went into the second half with a 46-45 deficit. Youngstown State hit a 43-31 run from there however and took the win 88-77. DJ Burns (12 rebounds) and Bryson Langdon (two assists) each had a team-high 17 points in the victory.
Fort Wayne Mastodons
Over on the Mastodons’ side, they did well in their first 15 outings, losing to only San Francisco and Pittsburgh. Fort Wayne is just 1-6 in their last seven, though. Those losses came to Wright State, Youngstown State, Robert Morris, IUPUI, Cleveland State and Milwaukee.
Matched up against Milwaukee on Thursday, the Mastodons were trailing by six points in the locker room. Fort Wayne made a run at it with a 33-30 second half but still lost 68-65 in the end. Jalen Jackson topped the team on his 17 points, three rebounds and three steals.
ANDREW’S FREE YOUNGSTOWN STATE VS FORT WAYNE PREDICTION
I’ll take a stab on Fort Wayne. The Mastodons have been struggling in the win column lately, but they’ve at least been competitive. Fort Wayne needs to shoot better than they did versus Milwaukee, though: they hit only 31.9 percent from the field and 27.8 percent from 3-point range in their latest defeat. Still, each of the Mastodons’ last six losses have come by eight points or fewer.
The last time these teams met up was one of those losses: 93-85 at Beeghly Center on January 10. In this home rematch I like Fort Wayne to get a little revenge. Should be a fun game regardless of the outcome, though.
