The Alabama Crimson Tide and the Purdue Boilermakers meet Saturday in college basketball action from Coca-Cola Coliseum. Alabama beat Arkansas State in their last game, moving to 6-2 overall. As for Purdue, they’re 8-1 on the year and coming off a win over Iowa on Monday. Let’s get into our Alabama vs. Purdue prediction. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Alabama Crimson Tide

The Tide jumped out to a 4-0 run in their first quartet this year, taking out Morehead State, Indiana State, South Alabama and Mercer. Alabama went just 1-2 over the next three however, losing to Ohio State and Clemson. In the 85-77 loss to the Tigers, the Tide shot just 34.3 percent from the field and gave up 53.3 percent on the other side. 

Alabama was able to muster another victory in their last matchup versus Arkansas State. The Crimson Tide went into the break with a 49-28 advantage and cruised from there in an 89-65 result. Alabama got a team-high 13 points from both Mark Sears (six assists) and Jarin Stevenson (four rebounds). 

Purdue Boilermakers 

Over on the Boilermakers’ side, they kicked off the year with a great run, going 7-0 overall. Purdue took out Samford, Morehead State, Xavier, Gonzaga, Tennessee, Marquette and Texas Southern before their first loss to Northwestern 92-88 in OT. The Boilermakers shot just 26.3 percent from 3-point range (5-of-19) in the defeat. 

Purdue was able to bounce back in their latest matchup versus Iowa. After a 45-24 run in the first half, the Boilermakers scored another 42 points in an 87-68 win. Leading the way was Zach Edey on his 25 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks for a double-double. 

ANDREW’S FREE ALABAMA VS PURDUE PREDICTION 

I’m staying with Purdue. The Boilermakers got back to their dominant ways on Monday versus Iowa, hitting a nice 52.3 percent from the field with a 41-35 rebounding edge and 24 team assists. Purdue hasn’t had many issues on the scoreboard this year; they’ve hit 71 or more points in every game. If the shots are falling early, the Boilermakers will be hard to catch. 

As for Alabama, they posted a nice effort versus a struggling Arkansas State team in their last outing. The good news for the Tide is that they’ve hit 77 or more points in all eight games this year, so this one should be a high-total finish. I like Purdue to keep the cover pace, though.