Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs Northwestern Wildcats Prediction, 1/29/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs Northwestern Wildcats

Date: Wednesday, January 29, 2025

Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, IL

TV: BTN

Welsh-Ryan Arena is the site where the Northwestern Wildcats (12-8) will try to beat the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (10-10) on Wednesday.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights played Michigan State and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 81-74 in their last game. In the matter of fouls, the Scarlet Knights walked away with 20 and Michigan State recorded 19 fouls. They also knocked down 5 of 19 tries from beyond the arc. Michigan State ended up going 84.6% when shooting free throws by knocking down 22 of their 26 attempts. In addition, Michigan State collected 40 boards (10 offensive, 30 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Michigan State totaled 19 assists and had 2 steals in this contest. With regard to defense, Rutgers allowed the other team to shoot 48.2% from the floor on 27 of 56 shooting. They also doled out 9 assists in the game in addition to forcing the other team into 15 turnovers and getting 10 steals. Concerning rebounding, they earned 30 with 13 of them being of the offensive sort. From the charity stripe, the Scarlet Knights made 19 of 25 attempts for a rate of 76.0%. Rutgers finished the game with a 33.8% FG percentage (23 out of 68) and knocked down 9 of their 30 shots from downtown.

Jordan Derkack is one player who played a role in this matchup. He finished 63.6% from the field and also dished out 1 assist. He played 27 minutes and totaled 4 rebounds. He ended up finishing with 26 points on 7 out of 11 shooting.

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Rutgers heads into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 10-10 for the year. They currently have an average of 76.5 points per outing (128th in the nation) while connecting on 44.5% from the floor. The Scarlet Knights are hitting 32.9% on shots from distance (145 of 441) and 69.9% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Rutgers is snagging 36.8 boards per contest and has accounted for 262 dimes for the campaign, which ranks 254th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 10.8 times per game and as a group they commit 17.2 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end of the court, the Scarlet Knights have forced 12.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 19.8 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 257th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 286 conceded on the campaign. The Scarlet Knights defensively are allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 44.9% (548 of 1,220) and they relinquish 36.4 rebounds per game as a unit. They are giving up 34.2% on 3-point attempts and they rank 280th in college hoops in points per game from their opponents (75.2).

In their last game, the Northwestern Wildcats took a loss by a score of 83-74 against Illinois. With respect to rebounding, Northwestern permitted Illinois to snag 44 in total (17 offensive). They wrapped up this game 28.1% from distance by shooting 9 of 32 and ended up shooting 16 out of 24 from the free throw line (66.7%). The Wildcats allowed Illinois to knock down 29 of 65 attempts from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.6% for the matchup. When the game finished, the Wildcats finished shooting 30 for 68 from the floor which had them shooting 44.1%. When talking about three-point attempts, Northwestern buried 10 of their 25 attempts (40.0%). They were able to knock down 4 of the free throws for a clip of 66.7%. Illinois earned 10 personal fouls for this contest which took the Wildcats to the free throw line for a total of 6 shots. They also gave up possession of the ball 5 times, while getting 6 steals in the matchup. The Wildcats earned 16 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive rebounds for a total of 24 for the matchup.

Jalen Leach ended up having an impact for the Wildcats for this game. He converted 7 out of 15 in this game for a field goal rate of 46.7%, and had 2 rebounds. He totaled 17 points in his 35 minutes on the hardwood and accumulated 4 assists for the contest.

Northwestern has a mark of 12-8 for the year. The Wildcats are committing 17.8 personal fouls every game while shooting 72.0% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 14.7 times per game (122nd in the nation) and they turn it over 10.1 times per game. Northwestern has totaled 1,484 points on the season (74.2 per game) and they collect 34.4 rebounds per game. On the offensive side of the court, the Wildcats are hitting on 44.4% from the field, which has them ranked 214th in college.

The Wildcats on the defensive end are ranked 101st in college in points allowed per contest with 68.9. They have forced 14.3 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 42.9% from the floor (146th in D-1). The Northwestern defense gives up 32.7% on shots from behind the 3-point line (140 of 428) and their opponents are making 73.5% of their free throw attempts. They have given up 15.0 assists and 34.7 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 312th and 201st in those defensive categories.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Rutgers

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