Will Purdue Lock In For Second Matchup Against Northwestern?
Despite Earlier Upset, Northwestern vs Purdue Spread is Still 12.5 Points
Northwestern shocked the world on December 1 with an overtime win against Purdue. At the time, Purdue was ranked No. 1 in the nation and fell to a mid-tier Big Ten team to begin December.
Now, these two teams will meet again.
This time, it’ll be at Purdue, where the Boilermakers will seek revenge over the Wildcats.
Purdue is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation and has just two losses this season. One of those two losses, again, came against Northwestern.
The Wildcats have won two straight games over Illinois and Ohio State. However, both of those games were at home. The Wildcats are just 2-3 on the road.
Therefore, Purdue is a 12.5-point favorite at -115, with the total currently at 142.5. The Over is currently juiced to -115.
Let’s bet on the Northwestern vs Purdue spread for tonight’s Big Ten matchup.
Wildcats vs Boilermakers 
Location: Mackey Arena, West Lafayette, Indiana
Day/Time:
Streaming: Watch Live Sports
Northwestern vs Purdue Spread & Trends
The Purdue Boilermakers have dominated throughout the season at home. Purdue is currently 10-0 at home and will look to add to that streak with another win tonight.
The Boilermakers have also been profitable against the spread, earning covers in 13 of 21 games this season. The Over has also hit in 14 of 21 games this year.
Meanwhile, Northwestern has also hit the Over in 13 of 20 games. However, the Wildcats have gone 9-10-1 against the spread, which hasn’t been profitable for Northwestern backers.
Northwestern has knocked off Purdue in two consecutive games. In those two games, Northwestern was a home underdog. The Wildcats will be underdogs against Purdue, but the game will be played in Purdue’s home facility this time.
Let’s Give The Northwestern Defense Credit
After a wild overtime affair against Illinois at home, the Northwestern Wildcats played much better defensively in their latest matchup against Ohio State.
At home, Northwestern held Ohio State to 58 points in an 83-58 win. This was the fewest amount of points Northwestern has allowed since its game on December 20 against Arizona State.
The Wildcats want to have that defensive identity. They especially dialed in against Ohio State, with excellent communication and just overall great physicality on the defensive end. Head coach Chris Collins didn’t notice many mistakes with their switching on defense and was proud of Northwestern’s rebounding on the defensive end.
Against Purdue, they’re going to need that effort and then some when going up against Purdue’s big man Zach Edey.
Zach Edey’s In Line For Wooden Award
The Boilermakers have had some pretty bad upsets throughout the years, with Zach Edey leading the way. However, this season, it all feels different.
Purdue only has two losses on its resume and is ranked the No. 2 team in the nation. The resume speaks for itself.
They wouldn’t be in this position without center Zach Edey.
Edey is a 7-foot-4 center for Purdue, averaging 23 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks while shooting nearly 63% from the floor.
With his performance comes accolades. He’s currently in the top 20 for the Wooden Award, which was announced on Tuesday night.
This award is given to the best college basketball player in the country every season.
Edey’s footwork and ability have come a long way since he began his career with Purdue. It would be a phenomenal milestone for Edey in his journey to be a professional basketball player in the NBA.
What Will Be Different This Time Around?
When Northwestern earned the shocking upset over Purdue at home, the Wildcats shot 10-for-20 from three and turned the ball over just three times. Meanwhile, Northwestern added 20 points off turnovers and allowed six points off turnovers in the win against Purdue.
Still, the Boilermakers took 41 foul shot attempts and added 52 rebounds in the loss. In comparison, Northwestern rebounded the ball just 27 times and got to the foul line 32 times.
Purdue wasn’t efficient from the floor. However, the biggest key to Northwestern’s win was the three turnovers.
That likely won’t change in this game. Northwestern ranks 7th in the nation offensively in turnover percentage. On the other hand, Purdue has earned just 14.7% of turnovers, which is 322nd in the nation.
What should change is Purdue’s shot-making. The Boilermakers only shot 43.3% from the field and added only five three-pointers in the entire game.
Typically, Purdue has shot 40.6% from three and 54.4% from inside the arc. The stats in this game should be more like that. After all, Northwestern has allowed teams to shoot nearly 36% from downtown and 49.5% from inside the arc.
Northwestern has also fouled at a very high rate and rarely gets to the foul line.
The Wildcats have shot it well from the field, hitting over 38% from deep and 52.7% from inside the arc. But they’ve been awful on the offensive glass. Against Purdue in the first game, Northwestern added only five offensive rebounds. There’s no reason Purdue will struggle on the glass against Northwestern in this one, either.
The game played out how most expected it to. The difference was Purdue’s inability to make shots. But at home, against a defense that has allowed an effective field goal percentage of 51.1% this season, the Boilermakers should be able to get major revenge on Northwestern this time around.
There are so many NCAAB picks today. While it’s not quite NCAA March Madness time, the NCAAB odds are starting to see more action as we head into February. That’s great for the sport. After reviewing the Northwestern vs Purdue spread, we’ll back Purdue at -12.5 (-115) in a fun revenge spot.
Wildcats vs Boilermakers Odds
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