Purdue Boilermakers vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights Prediction, 1/9/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Purdue Boilermakers vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Date: Thursday, January 9, 2025

Location: Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, NJ

TV: FS1

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-7) will try to beat the Purdue Boilermakers (11-4) at Jersey Mike’s Arena on Thursday.

The Purdue Boilermakers took the court against Northwestern and took home the win by a score of 79-61 in their last game. Purdue finished the contest having earned a 50.9% field goal percentage (28 of 55) and made 8 out of their 20 shots from distance. At the free throw line, the Boilermakers knocked down 15 of 18 attempts for a rate of 83.3%. With regard to rebounding, they earned 34 with 8 of them being offensive. They also recorded 14 assists in this matchup in addition to forcing 13 turnovers and having 7 steals. Concerning the defense, Purdue let their opponent shoot 38.3% from the field on 23 of 60 shooting. Northwestern earned 14 dimes and had 7 steals for the matchup. Additionally, Northwestern pulled down 25 rebounds (10 offensive, 15 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Northwestern shot 66.7% at the charity stripe by knocking down 8 of 12 attempts. They made 7 out of their 25 shots from beyond the arc. In reference to fouls, the Boilermakers walked away with 14 while Northwestern recorded 17 fouls.

Braden Smith is a guy who played a role in the matchup. He finished shooting 50.0% from the field and also recorded 7 dimes. He was on the court for 35 minutes and also totaled 6 boards. He scored 22 points on 8 out of 16 shooting.

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Purdue steps onto the hardwood with a mark of 11-4 for the campaign. They have an average of 77.4 points per contest (135th in the nation) while hitting 48.8% from the field. The Boilermakers are connecting on 39.6% on shots from downtown (130 of 328) and 72.7% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Purdue is grabbing 33.3 rebounds per contest and has racked up 259 assists for the campaign, which ranks 34th in college hoops in terms of passing. They cough up possession 11.3 times per game and as a squad are committing 14.9 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Boilermakers are forcing their opponents into 11.2 turnovers per game and they draw 18.7 personal fouls. They rank 272nd in college hoops in giving up assists with 217 conceded on the year. The Boilermakers defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 43.6% (385 of 884) and they surrender 32.4 rebounds per game as a team. They surrender 30.7% from beyond the arc and they rank 143rd in D-1 in points per game from their opponents (69.8).

When they last stepped on the court, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights took a loss by a score of 75-63 against Wisconsin. The Scarlet Knights were able to pull down 18 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards totaling 31 for the contest. They also turned it over 8 times, while recording 8 steals in this matchup. Wisconsin committed 15 fouls for this contest which took the Scarlet Knights to the charity stripe for a total of 13 shots. They were able to knock down 6 of those for a percentage of 46.2%. Pertaining to shooting from 3-point land, Rutgers made 7 of their 26 attempts (26.9%). When the final whistle blew, the Scarlet Knights walked away from this one shooting 25 out of 73 from the floor which had them at 34.2%. The Scarlet Knights permitted Wisconsin to knock down 31 of 57 tries from the field which had them sitting at 54.4% for the matchup. They finished 31.8% from beyond the perimeter by going 7 out of 22 and walked away from this one shooting 6 of 6 from the free throw line (100.0%). In reference to how they cleaned up the glass, Rutgers allowed Wisconsin to grab 38 overall (6 on the offensive side).

Tyson Acuff ended up being a factor for the Scarlet Knights for this contest. He earned 17 points in his 30 minutes on the hardwood and earned 2 dimes in the game. He made 6 out of 15 in this contest giving him a rate of 40.0%, and had 2 rebounds.

Rutgers has a record of 8-7 this season. As an offensive team, the Scarlet Knights are shooting 45.2% from the field, which has them ranked 177th in the nation. Rutgers has accounted for 1,173 pts for the season (78.2 per contest) and they collect 36.9 rebounds per game. They are getting an assist 13.6 times per game (214th in Division 1) and they are turning it over 10.5 times per game. The Scarlet Knights are committing 16.3 fouls every game and they connect on 69.7% from the free throw line.

The Rutgers defense surrenders 34.7% on shots from distance (125 of 360) and opponents are connecting on 66.9% of their foul shots. They relinquish 13.6 assists and 37.1 total rebounds per game, which has them ranked 227th and 299th in those categories. The Scarlet Knights defensively are ranked 282nd in college hoops in points given up per game with 75.0. They are forcing 12.5 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 44.3% from the floor (250th in D-1).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Purdue

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