The Rutgers Scarlet Knights will travel to West Lafayette, Indiana to face the 3^rd-ranked Purdue Boilermakers at the Mackey Arena with the game scheduled to start at 7:00 PM ET on Thursday evening and will air on Fox Sports 1.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are in 10^th place in the Big Ten Conference with a conference record of 6-8 and an overall record of 14-11 following Sunday’s 70-81 loss on the road against the Minnesota Golden Gophers which also ended their four-game winning streak. 

The Scarlet Knights have been one of the lowest-scoring teams in college basketball this season as they enter this game averaging 66.26 points per game which ranks 331^st nationally, however, Rutgers has been one of the best teams defensively as they are allowing the 27^th fewest points per game this season with an average of 65.13 points allowed per game. 

Clifford Omoruyi has been one of the best players on the team as he leads the team in scoring, rebounds, and blocks with an average of 11.2 points, 9 rebounds, and 3.3 blocks per game which is the 2^nd most in college basketball this season. The Rutgers Scarlet Knights will look to bounce back following the loss against the Minnesota Golden Gophers when they travel to face the Purdue Boilermakers.

The Purdue Boilermakers enter this game ranked 3^rd in the AP Poll and 3^rd in the Coaches Poll with an overall record of 23-3 and are in 1^st place in the Big Ten Conference with a conference record of 12-3, however, the Boilermakers are coming off a 69-73 loss on the road against the Ohio State Buckeyes on Sunday which also ended their nine-game winning streak. 

The success of the Boilermakers this season can be attributed to their offensive play as they are averaging the 7^th most points per game in college basketball with an average of 85.04 points per game while also being an above-average team defensively allowing an average of 69.8 points per game which ranks 118^th nationally. Zach Edey has been one of the best players in college basketball this season and leads the team in scoring, rebounds, and blocks with an average of 23.2 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game which is the 3^rd most in points and the 3^rd most in rebounds in college basketball this season. 

The Purdue Boilermakers will look to bounce back following the loss against the Buckeyes when they host the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Thursday evening.

JustBet has the Purdue Boilermakers listed as 15-point favorites at home against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Thursday evening. The teams have split the last ten matchups while Purdue has won two of the previous three meetings. The Scarlet Knights have covered the spread in nine of the last ten including the previous eight games in the series. 

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are 12-13 ATS overall, 4-5 ATS on the road, 6-6 ATS as an underdog, and 7-7 ATS in conference games this season while the Purdue Boilermakers are 14-10-2 ATS overall, 6-6-1 ATS at home, 13-10-2 ATS as a favorite, and 7-8 ATS in conference games on the year.

Purdue is one of the best teams in college basketball this season while Rutgers is one of the worst teams in the Big Ten Conference and has been the better team most recently in the series, winning two of the previous three matchups. However, Rutgers has covered the spread in nine of the last ten including the last eight games in the series which is why I am taking the points with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights when they travel to face the Purdue Boilermakers on Thursday evening.