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Purdue vs Penn State 3/11/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

Penn State Nittany Lions (14-16) vs. Purdue Boilermakers (25-6)
March 11, 2022 9:00 pm EDT
The Line: Purdue Boilermakers -8.5 / Penn State Nittany Lions +8.5 ; Over/Under: 136
(Get latest betting odds)

The Penn State Nittany Lions & 9th ranked Purdue Boilermakers will square off at Gainbridge Fieldhouse this Friday night in the Quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament.

The 11-seed Penn State Nittany Lions improved to 14-16 on the season after upsetting the Ohio State Buckeyes, 71-68, last night. Penn State trialed by a 33-24 margin at halftime, however, the Nittany Lions were outstanding offensively in the 2nd half against Ohio State and was able to hold off the Buckeyes after taking a 66-62 lead with 1:24 left in regulation. Penn State shot 46.3% from the field & 31.6% from beyond the arc while allowing Ohio State to shoot 44.2% from the field & 38.9% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Nittany Lions was Jalen Pickett who had 16 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, & 1 steal.

Coming into their game against Ohio State, Penn State was averaging 64.5 ppg on 43.2% shooting from the field. The Nittany Lions were averaging 8.1 three-pointers per game on 34.4% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Penn State has been led by Jalen Pickett (13.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.1 spg), Seth Lundy (12.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.0 spg), Sam Sessoms (11.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.8 apg), & John Harrar (10.4 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 1.2 apg).

Defensively, prior to their game against Ohio State, Penn State was holding their opponents to an average of 64.8 ppg on 41.3% shooting from the field. The Nittany Lions had a rebound margin of 4.4 and a turnover margin of -3.4.

The 9th ranked Purdue Boilermakers finished their regular season with an overall record of 25-6 and earned the 3-seed in the Big Ten Tournament after finishing conference play with a 14-6 record. Purdue finished their non-conference portion of their schedule with a 11-0 record with their best wins coming against North Carolina, Villanova & Florida State. Purdue won 10 of their first 13 conference games which included two wins against the top-seed Illinois Fighting Illini, however, the Boilermakers struggled down the stretch, losing 2 of their last 3 regular season games.

On the season, Purdue is averaging 80.7 ppg on 49.7% shooting from the field. The Boilermakers are averaging 9.0 three-pointers per game on 39.7% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Purdue has been led by Jaden Ivey (17.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 spg), Zach Edey (14.7 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.3 bpg), Trevion Williams (11.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 spg), & Sasha Stefanovic (11.4 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.4 apg).

Defensively, Purdue is allowing their opponents to average 68.8 ppg on 42.8% shooting from the field. The Boilermakers have a rebound margin of 9.4 and a turnover margin of -1.8.

The Nittany Lions are 4-0 ATS in thier last 4 games overall & 24-9-4 ATS in thier last 37 neutral site games. The Boilermakers are 5-2 ATS in thier last 7 games vs. a team with a losing striaght up record, however, are just 0-5-2 ATS in thie rlast 7 games overall.

Purdue was able to defeat Penn State in their only regular season matchup as the Boilermakers defeated the Nittany Lions by an 74-67 margin on the road in early January.

Penn State has been led by their defense this season, which ranks 45th in scoring defense & 70th in defensive FG%, however, the Nittany Lions have struggled offensively, ranking just 318th in scoring offense & 227th in FG%. Purdue was one of the best offensive teams in the country as the Boilermakers come into this game ranked 7th in scoring offense, 3rd in FG%, & 3rd in 3-FG%, however, the Boilermakers defense was nothing more than average, coming into this game ranked 166th in scoring defense & 158th in defensive FG%. Penn State pulled off a solid victory against Ohio State, however, as I just don’t see the Nittany Lions having much success trying to keep up with the explosive Purdue offense, I’m taking the Boilermakers to cover this large spread. Good Luck!

Brett Nault's Free Pick: Purdue Boilermakers -8.5

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Brett Nault

Brett has been involved with sports his entire life, whether playing them or betting on them, and loves using his education in data analytics to break down all matchups to get you a competitive edge. Follow Brett Nault on Twitter @BrettCU05

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