The Purdue Boilermakers have been flawless in Big Ten play this season. If they can keep that up for another week, they will have a vice grip on the conference’s regular season title. Purdue faces two ranked teams over the next several days, beginning with Wednesday’s matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Ohio State has zoomed to a top-15 team nationally because of its impressive play in the Big Ten, winning 11 of its 12 matchups including an upset of then-No. 1 Michigan State. The Buckeyes can move up into a tie for first with Purdue while holding the head-to-head tiebreaker if they can somehow pull out the victory.
Even though both teams are ranked, Purdue is the superior team and at home, which could make it a bigger favorite than most would believe at first glance. The Boilermakers have squeaked out some victories of late but are the better team and it would be a surprise if they lose this contest.
At 8:30 p.m. ET, tune into BTN for live television coverage of this NCAA basketball game on Wednesday, February 7, 2018, at the Mackey Arena.
We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Wednesday schedule.
Odds Analysis
Purdue is 23-2 straight up and 15-10 against the spread. The Boilermakers have played in 14 home games and covered in nine of them. They have been favored in all but one game this season, going 14-10 against the spread in those games.
Ohio State is 20-5 straight up and 12-11 against the spread. The Buckeyes have covered in all four of their road games this season and bettors who ride with them would love to see that trend continue. Ohio State has covered in half of its four games as the underdog this year.
Lookahead Situation
The Boilermakers would not at first glance be overlooking this one, but they have a titanic matchup against fellow top-five powerhouse Michigan State next time out. While Ohio State has put together a nice conference season, it is still not seen on the same pedestal as the Spartans or Boilermakers.
Computer algorithms give Purdue an 89 percent chance at winning this game, while the next game against Michigan State will be much more of a toss-up. One thing that helps the Boilermakers is that they have won each of their past three Big Ten games by single digits, including an escape against Rutgers by two points last time out.
The may force the team to buckle down and be focused for this one, lest it blows the undefeated mark in the conference. However, if there is any letdown, Ohio State will aim to take advantage and get closer to the upset.
Player To Watch
Keita Bates-Diop — Ohio State’s junior forward scored a career-high 35 points and had 13 rebounds in the Buckeyes’ 75-67 against Illinois on Sunday. Bates-Diop was named the Big Ten Player of the Week for the fourth time in his career.
He’ll be looking to build off that big performance against Purdue. Bates-Diop is averaging a team-high 20.2 points and 8.9 rebounds a game for the Buckeyes this year.
He is averaging 24.3 points a game over the last three matchups and enters this contest with two straight double-doubles. He had 32 points in his team’s win against No. 1 Michigan State on January 7th and could a difference-maker in this one if Purdue can keep him under wraps.
Free NCAA Men’s Basketball ATS Picks
Purdue hasn’t dominated lately but its complete body of work is ultra-impressive. The Boilermakers should have no problem winning this game. If the spread is under eight points, take Purdue to cover.
Both teams are pretty good defensively so this scoring total won’t be too high. The “under” could be considered if the oddsmakers project too much scoring.
NCAA Men’s Basketball Odds: Purdue 76, Ohio State 68
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