Big Ten Betting Roundup: Can Maryland Pull Off Upset Against Visiting Purdue?

Michigan State Set to Return to Action Against Rival Michigan Following On-Campus Shooting

Race for Second Place in Big Ten, Heating Up

Big Ten-leading Purdue has looked beatable in some of its recent games.

Maryland proved it can play with the Boilermakers earlier in the season with a three-point loss on the road despite being outrebounded 40-30 and outscored at the foul line 16-8. That could be the best game for the rest of the week in the Big Ten when they meet on Thursday night. That leads off the weekly Big Ten betting roundup.

Following the shooting on the Michigan State campus, athletic events are being postponed and that included Wednesday’s men’s basketball game against Minnesota.

Purdue fell two spots to No. 3 in both national polls. The Boilermakers did pick up first-place votes in both the Associated Press and coaches’ polls.

Indiana is 14th in the AP poll and 15th in the coaches’ poll. No other Big Ten teams are in the top 25. That could change if Northwestern takes care of business this weekend. Iowa and Rutgers are receiving votes in both polls with Maryland landing on some ballots in the coaches’ poll.

Purdue (+850) is third in the odds to win the national championship. Indiana (+2800) is tied for 12th.

Game of the Week

 Purdue Boilermakers vs Maryland Terrapins

Date & Time:

National player of the year front-runner Zach Edey had 49 points and 29 rebounds in the two games following losses this season, and the Boilermakers will look to get him more involved after he managed just 17 field-goal attempts in the last two games for Purdue (23-3, 12-3 in the Big Ten).

Purdue has been struggling a bit from 3-point range and that has helped teams contend with Edey inside. Even with those issues, the Boilermakers are two-point favorites in this matchup which is one of the top matchups in the Big Ten betting roundup.

Maryland (17-8, 8-6) has lost just once at home and has already beaten two ranked teams in College Park this season. It is no wonder why there is plenty of money coming in on the underdog Terrapins.

Jahmir Young has averaged 18.2 points in the six games since the first meeting against Purdue. He is scoring 17.2 points per contest at home compared to just 13.9 on the road.

The teams have split the last six meetings. However, Purdue has won three of the last four, including a 58-55 win on Jan. 22. The Terrapins did cover as the 8½-point road favorite.

Each of the last four meetings finished as one-score games.

Both teams are in action on Sunday with Purdue playing host to Ohio State and Maryland playing at Nebraska.

Other Games to Watch

 Ohio State Buckeyes vs Iowa Hawkeyes

Date & Time:

When looking at the Big Ten betting roundup, Ohio State finds itself playing the role of a spoiler coming down the stretch and that will be the case when they head to face Iowa. The Hawkeyes are favored by 7.5 points and are a solid favorite in the eyes of those making the college basketball picks.

Freshman Brice Sensabaugh has done much of the heavy lifting on offense for Ohio State (11-14, 3-11) this season, however, he is just 8 of 36 in his last three games. The Buckeyes have dropped six straight heading into this matchup.

Iowa (16-9 8-6) has won four of its last five games with Kris Murray averaging 22.2 points with nine 3-pointers during that stretch.

Ohio State is looking to sweep the season series against Iowa for the first time since the 2017-18 season after winning 93-77 on Jan. 21 behind a 27-point effort from Sensabaugh.

 Illinois Fighting Illini vs Indiana Hoosiers

Date & Time:

Players might want to tread carefully during their drives to the hoop as Illinois and Indiana rank first and second in the Big Ten in blocked shots per game.

Since Indiana’s upset of Purdue, the Hoosiers have averaged just 63.3 points per game. Trayce Jackson-Davis has 71 points and 39 rebounds in the games against Rutgers, Michigan and Northwestern.

The offensive woes didn’t cost the Hoosiers (18-8, 9-6) in the first two games, but it did result in a loss to Northwestern to fall into third place so this is a key game when it comes to the NCAAB standings.

Illinois (17-8, 8-6) is coming off a forgettable performance against Penn State as the Nittany Lions shot 58% from the field to waste the eighth 20-point game of the season by Terrence Shannon.

The road team has won each of the last four games in the series with four of the last five meetings finishing under the total.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs Wisconsin Badgers

Date & Time:

Don’t expect a high-scoring affair with Rutgers 11th and Wisconsin 13th among 14 conference teams in field goal percentage. One of the main differences is that Rutgers is the best defensive team in the conference while Wisconsin ranks near the bottom of the conference in field-goal percentage defense.

Rutgers (16-10, 8-7) has dropped three games in a row and enters the game tied for eighth in the Big Ten. Wisconsin (15-10, 7-8) is sitting in 10th place.

The Badgers are last in the conference in rebounding and rebounding margin while Rutgers has made the second-fewest 3-pointers in the conference.

Four of the last six times that Rutgers and Wisconsin have squared off, the game finished over the total.

Wisconsin has won three of the last four meetings and covered in each of those wins.

Michigan State Spartans vs Michigan Wolverines

Date, time (TV): Saturday, Feb. 18, 8:00 p.m. ET (FOX)

There will be some heavy hearts as Michigan State prepares to return to the court after the tragic events on campus.

Michigan State is just 1.5 games out of second place in the conference standings. Michigan could tie the Spartans in the standings with a win so it is no wonder that this is one of the more intriguing matchups in the Big Ten betting roundup.

Michigan State (16-9, 8-6) relies on seniors Tyson Walker and Joey Hauser as well as junior A.J. Hoggard to lead the offense. For Michigan Wolverines (14-12, 8-7), freshman Jett Howard and sophomore Kobe Bufkin are asked to provide offensive support for leading scorer Hunter Dickinson.

After the previous two matchups were decided by 16 and 17 points, the teams got after it in the Jan. 7 meeting, with the Spartans winning 59-53 with both teams shooting under 40% from the field.

 Penn State Nittany Lions vs Minnesota Golden Gophers

Date & Time:

It has been a tough year for Minnesota with just one conference win. Is there hope for the Golden Gophers? Perhaps since Penn State is 1-7 on the road this season. The Nittany Lions are coming off an impressive win over Illinois thanks to 41 points and eight assists from Jalen Pickett.

Minnesota (7-16, 1-12) has dropped eight games in a row with each of the last four games being decided by an average of 25.5 points. Leading scorer Dawson Garcia has been held to an average of 10 points in the last two games.

Penn State (15-11, 6-9) has won four of the last five meetings with an average margin of 13.3 in those victories.

 Iowa Hawkeyes vs Northwestern Wildcats

Date & Time:

This game could come down to ball security. Northwestern leads the Big Ten in turnover margin while Iowa is setting the pace in the assist/turnover ratio.

Iowa is the top-scoring team in the conference with Kris Murray leading the way while Northwestern is third in scoring defense, so perhaps the best could be saved for last during the weekly Big Ten betting roundup.

The Wildcats (19-7, 10-5) are coming off a huge win over Indiana as they took over second place in the Big Ten standings.

Iowa is going for its 10th win in a row against Northwestern. The Hawkeyes have covered in eight of the previous nine matchups.


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