As we have seen countless times this season, cracking the top 10 has proven to be the kiss of death for many teams. Like you guys, I have been analyzing the College Basketball lines and wagering for quite some time now, and I can’t remember a regular season as unpredictable as this one. It has almost reached the point where playing the underdog against a ranked opponent is the way to go. The latest team to fall prey to the curse of getting ranked in the top 10 is the Ohio State Buckeyes, who have lost back to back games since making their upwards move.
They come into this week having dropped to #16 in the college basketball national rankings, and they will be looking to stop the bleeding on home court against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Tuesday evening. Rutgers certainly looks like a lamb to the slaughter in this one, coming in as a 16-point betting underdog, but they might be getting a fragile looking Ohio State team at just the right time. Should the Buckeyes be on upset alert on Tuesday night?
Not only did those losses send them spiraling down to #16 in the nation, it also meant that they relinquished the Big Ten Conference lead to the Michigan State Spartans. The goal to be regular season champions appears to now be gone, and it’s all about getting their mojo back this week. The Buckeyes are 14-13 ATS and 7-20 O/U this season.
Scarlet Knights vs. Buckeyes College Basketball Lines & Game Preview
✈️🛬 | 📍Columbus, OH
Wheels down in Ohio as we are set to battle the Buckeyes in our final #B1G road contest of the season tomorrow night at 7 PM on @BigTenNetwork. 🛡⚔️ #KnightAndDay pic.twitter.com/NAWvsQ262m — Rutgers Basketball (@RutgersMBB) 20 de febrero de 2018
- When: Tuesday, February 20 at 7 PM EST
- Where: Value City Arena, Columbus
- TV: BTN
- Radio: 710 AM (Rutgers) / 97.1 FM (Ohio State)
- Live Stream: BTN2Go
- College Basketball Lines: Ohio State Buckeyes -14.5 (Over/Under at 128 points)
Team Records
- All: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 13-16 / Ohio State Buckeyes 22-7
- Home: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 13-8 / Ohio State Buckeyes 16-3
- Away: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 0-8 / Ohio State Buckeyes 6-4
- ATS: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 11-10 / Ohio State Buckeyes 14-13
- Over/Under: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 8-13 / Ohio State Buckeyes 7-20
Can Michigan State Cover the Huge NCAA Basketball Spread vs. Illinois?
Recent Head to Head (Last 6 Games)
- Record: Ohio State Buckeyes lead 5-1
- Score: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 62.17 / Ohio State Buckeyes 74.50
- Field Goal Percentage: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 35.20 / Ohio State Buckeyes 47.69
- Rebounds: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 37.33 / Ohio State Buckeyes 42.17
- 3 Point Shots: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 30-121 / Ohio State Buckeyes 40-116
- Steals: Rutgers Scarlet Knights 6.50 / Ohio State Buckeyes 5.67
Why bet on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights?
The issue that the Buckeyes are having right now pale in comparison to what is happening with this Rutgers Scarlet Knights squad. They have been absolutely brutal in conference play, winning just 3 games against Big Ten opposition. They have just 2 wins in their last 12 games, and when you look at their stats on the season, it becomes pretty obvious where their main problem lies. The Scarlet Knights are among the best on the defensive end of the court, giving up just 63.6 PPG, god for 12th in the nation. It is when they transition into the offense, though, that things go seriously wrong, as they are averaging just 65 PPG. It’s tough to compete against the best teams in college basketball when you just can’t score enough points to keep things close. Rutgers lost 68-46 in their last meeting this season. The Scarlet Knights have gone 11-10 ATS and 8-12-1 O/U this season.Team Statistics
Offense- Total Score: 65.03
- Field Goal Percentage: 39.89
- Three-Point Percentage: 28.89
- Free Throw Percentage: 63.28
- Total Rebounds: 39.55
- Total Score: 63.62
- Field Goal Percentage: 40.59
- Three-Point Percentage: 31.62
- Free Throw Percentage: 68.78
- Total Rebounds: 36.72
Why bet on the Ohio State Buckeyes?
This will be the second to last game of the regular season for the Buckeyes, which mean that given how last week went, they need to win their final two games to start feeling a little better about themselves ahead of March Madness. Ohio State went on a winning run that included a win over #3 ranked Purdue which launched them into the top 10. They looked like a team that was getting hot at just the right time, but they then followed that up with back to back losses to Penn State and Michigan last week.
Not only did those losses send them spiraling down to #16 in the nation, it also meant that they relinquished the Big Ten Conference lead to the Michigan State Spartans. The goal to be regular season champions appears to now be gone, and it’s all about getting their mojo back this week. The Buckeyes are 14-13 ATS and 7-20 O/U this season.
Team Statistics
Offense- Total Score: 75.83
- Field Goal Percentage: 48.37
- Three-Point Percentage: 35.22
- Free Throw Percentage: 72.96
- Total Rebounds: 36.62
- Total Score: 66.72
- Field Goal Percentage: 41.49
- Three-Point Percentage: 34.37
- Free Throw Percentage: 71.10
- Total Rebounds: 31.10
Latest College Basketball Betting Trends
- Scarlet Knights are 3-6 ATS in their last 9 games
- Scarlet Knights are 1-8 SU in their last 9 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Rutgers’s last 9 games
- Buckeyes are 17-4 SU in their last 21 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Ohio State’s last 6 games
