Michigan State vs Rutgers Pick – Basketball Predictions & Odds 1/19/23

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Michigan State Spartans meet Thursday in college basketball action from Breslin Center. Rutgers is 13-5 overall this year. The Knights beat Ohio State in their last game. As for Michigan State, they’re sitting at 12-6 on the season after a loss to Purdue. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights 

Rutgers opened the season on an 8-4 run with losses to Temple, Miami-FL, Ohio State and Seton Hall. The Knights are 5-1 since then with wins over Coppin State, Purdue, Maryland, Northwestern and Ohio State.

In the Ohio State game back on Sunday, the Knights were down 23-20 at halftime. Rutgers came back in the second and scored 11 overtime points on the way to a 68-64 win. Cam Spencer was the leading scorer on 21 points with seven boards. 

Michigan State Spartans 

Over on the Michigan State side, they were 8-4 after 12 games with losses to Gonzaga, Alabama, Notre Dame and Northwestern. The Spartans are 4-2 in their last six outings with losses to Illinois and Purdue. 

Matched up against Purdue on Monday, the Spartans trailed 27-25 after one half. Michigan State scored 38 more points from there but fell short in a 64-63 defeat. Tyson Walker led the team on 30 points. 

ANDREW’S FREE PICK

I might take a stab on Michigan State here. The Spartans held their own against a great Purdue team in their last outing, shooting 47.2 percent from the floor with 30 rebounds. Michigan State is 7-2 in their last nine games and should be able to hang around in this one if they’re playing well. As for Rutgers, they’ve eked out a couple of close wins in their last pair but they haven’t scored more than 65 points in four of the last five outings. This is looking like an intriguing matchup, and I think Michigan State can power out a cover. 

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