Youngstown State vs PFW 12/31/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Fort Wayne Mastodons and the Youngstown State Penguins meet Saturday in college basketball action from Beeghly Center. Fort Wayne is fresh off a Thursday game versus Robert Morris. In that one the Mastodons lost by five points. As for Youngstown State, they played Cleveland State in their Thursday game. The Penguins ended up taking a 14-point victory. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Fort Wayne managed to go 3-3 over their first six games this year. The Mastodons beat SIUE, Manchester and Eastern Michigan in that stretch. After that came a nice 6-1 run with a lone loss to Detroit on December 1. 

In the Thursday game versus Robert Morris, Fort Wayne took a three-point deficit into the second half. The Mastodons were outscored 35-33 from there and lost 75-70. Jarred Godfrey was the high man on 20 points with five assists. 

Over on the Youngstown State side, they went 4-2 over their first six games, losing to Notre Dame and Navy. The Penguins hit a 5-2 run after that with wins over Western Illinois, Wright State, Westminster PA, Southern U and Central Michigan. 

Matched up against Cleveland State on Thursday, the Penguins were ahead 39-32 going into the locker room. Youngstown State scored another 46 points in the second for an 85-71 win. Brandon Rush topped the team with 21 points and six rebounds. 

PICK: I’ll probably lean Fort Wayne here. The Mastodons didn’t play their greatest basketball on Thursday versus Robert Morris. That said, Fort Wayne has hit 70 or more points in five of their last six outings. If the Mastodons can keep some sort of pace with Youngstown State offensively I think they’ll be okay on a cover. The Penguins have hit 73 or more points in six straight games however, so it may be a tough sell. I’m probably staying away from this one.