Rutgers vs Wake Forest 12/17/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (8-3) vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (6-4)
December 17, 2022 12:00 pm EDT
The Line: Rutgers Scarlet Knights -10.5 / Wake Forest Demon Deacons +10.5; Over/Under: +133.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights meet in college basketball action from the Jersey Mike’s Arena on Saturday afternoon.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons will look to build on their 67-66 win over App State in their last game. Tyree Appleby leads the Demon Deacons in scoring and assists with 18.7 PPG along with 5.4 APG while Daivien Williamson has 10.2 PPG and Cameron Hildreth has 11.9 PPG with a team-high 6.6 RPG and 3.3 APG as well this season. Andrew Carr has 10.5 PPG with 6.1 RPG to round out the group of double-digit scorers for Wake so far this season. As a team, Wake Forest is averaging 76.7 PPG on 46.7% shooting from the field, 34.5% from three and 74.6% from the foul line this season.
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights will be out to bounce back from a 45-43 loss to Seton Hall in their last game. Clifford Omoruyi leads Rutgers with a team-high 14.4 PPG and 9.5 RPG to lead the Scarlet Knights in scoring and on the glass this season. Cam Spencer has 12.5 PPG with a team-high 3.6 APG to lead Rutgers in assists while Aundre Hyatt has 11.2 PPG with 4.7 RPG to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for Rutgers up to this point in the year. As a team, Rutgers is averaging 69.4 PPG on 42.4% shooting from the field, 30.9% from three and 71.3% from the foul line this season.
Wake Forest is 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games as a road underdog and 8-3 ATs in their last 11 games following an ATS loss while the over is 4-1 in their last 5 Saturday games. Rutgers is 9-4-1 ATS in their last 14 games as a home favorite of 7-12.5 points and 1-6 ATs in their last 7 games after scoring 50 points or less in the previous game while the under is 4-1 in their last 5 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600.
I get the case to be made for Rutgers at home as this Rutgers defense is a beast and is 3rd in the country in KenPom’s defensive efficiency ratings. However, as good as the defense is, you still have to be able to score to pull away and cover a double-digit spread, and while this could happen against teams like Central Connecticut and Rider, Wake Forest is a much more consistent offense that scores well inside the arc. I get that Rutgers shut down Indiana at home, but this still feels like far too many points. I’ll lean towards Wake Forest.
