A No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament could very well be on the line when the third-ranked Purdue Boilermakers travel to face the No. 4 Michigan State Spartans in a titanic Big Ten matchup. While Michigan State is the more dominant program traditionally, Purdue has been fantastic this season, entering with an undefeated mark in conference play.
While Purdue has been nothing short of dominant all year, Michigan State has been a really good team in its own right and also gets this game at home. This matchup is lining up to be a classic.
The Spartans may be projected as slight favorites but the game could definitely go either way as the Boilermakers pose a stiff test.
At 4 p.m. ET, tune into ESPN 2 for live television coverage of this NCAA basketball game on Saturday, February 10, 2018, at the Breslin Student Events Center.
We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Saturday schedule.
Odds Analysis
Purdue is 23-2 straight up and 15-10 against the spread. The Boilermakers have played in seven road games and have covered in four of them. Purdue has only been the underdog once this season and did cover in that contest.
Michigan State is 22-3 straight up and 13-11-1 against the spread. The Spartans have covered in nine of their 15 road games. Michigan State has been favored in every game this season. There is a slight chance it could be the underdog in this matchup, but that depends on how the oddsmakers see the betting action lining up.
Key Stat
20.2. That’s how many assists per game this Michigan State team is averaging. The Spartans are the No. 1 team in the country in that category capable of sharing the ball among a barrage of weapons on offense.
Sophomore Miles Bridges is the team’s top scorer, averaging 17.4 points along with 7.4 rebounds a game, but he’s got a lot of help around him. Fellow sophomores Nick Ward, Joshua Langford and Cassius Winston and freshman Jaren Jackson Jr. are additional threats that help make up a very balance attack from the Spartans.
As a unit, Michigan State’s offense is averaging 83.2 points per game. They are facing off against a Purdue team that averages 84 points per game and 18 assists.
The Boilermakers also have a strong core of offensive core led by Carsen Edwards and Vincent Edwards so this will be a very good battle between two high-scoring squads.
Key Stat
No. 1. That’s Purdue’s standing in the Big Ten heading into conference showdowns against No. 14 Ohio State and No. 4 Michigan State. The Boilermakers come into Wednesday’s matchup against the Buckeyes riding a 19-game winning streak as well. If they can get through this stretch without a blemish they should cruise to the regular season conference title.
The team’s most notable conference win was against No. 25 Michigan on January 25th and the team also has victories against non-conference foes No. 17 Louisville and No. 2 Arizona this season. This week will be a big test for Purdue.
Michigan State is 11-2 against Big Ten opponents coming into this matchup against the Boilermakers. The Spartans fell to conference opponents Michigan and Ohio State earlier this season.
Free NCAA Men’s Basketball ATS Picks
This has all the elements to set up for a great showdown. Michigan State has the more established program but Purdue has a legitimate claim as a national title contender. On a neutral court Purdue would be the choice, but the locale is a huge plus for the Spartans.
Take Michigan State to win this game, and it could also be the right choice to cover the spread if it is as small as expected.
NCAA Men’s Basketball Odds: Michigan State 80, Purdue 77
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