Michigan State vs Rutgers Prediction 3/5/26 College Basketball Picks Today

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Michigan State Spartans meet Thursday in college basketball action from Breslin Center in East Lansing. Here’s a Michigan State vs. Rutgers prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Michigan State vs. Rutgers pick.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights Betting Preview

Rutgers was last above the .500 mark back on January 11, when the team was sporting a 9-8 overall record. Losses to Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan State, USC, UCLA, and Nebraska came next, then wins over Maryland and Penn State. After losing to Minnesota and Washington there, the Knights beat Maryland for a 12-17 overall record this year.

In the Maryland game on Sunday, the Scarlet Knights entered the locker room at the break with a 39-20 advantage. Rutgers was outscored 45-30 the rest of the way, however, so they had to hang on during an eventual 69-65 victory on the road. Leading the team in scoring was Tariq Francis with 19 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Darren Buchanan added 14 points with seven boards as well.

Michigan State Spartans Betting Preview

Over on the Michigan State side, they went 8-0 to start the year. After taking a loss to Duke, Michigan State beat Penn State, Toledo, Oakland, and Cornell before another loss to Nebraska. Next came wins over USC, Northwestern, Indiana, Washington, Oregon, Maryland, and Rutgers. The Spartans went 3-3 in the next six outings, beating Illinois, UCLA, and Ohio State, with losses to Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Wins over Purdue and Indiana have come since then for a 24-5 record this year.

Matched up against Indiana over the weekend, the Spartans were up 45-37 by the end of the first half. In the second, Michigan State was able to keep it going with a 32-27 run. In the end as the game came to a finish, the Spartans emerged victorious on the road 77-64. Jaxon Kohler led the way on 21 points with 13 rebounds and two assists, while Jeremy Fears added 21 points with nine assists.

Why the Michigan State Spartans will win

• Michigan State has won each of its last 12 games at Jack Breslin Student Events Center against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Rutgers has lost each of its last nine games against AP-ranked opponents.
• Michigan State has won the first half in nine of its last 10 night games at Jack Breslin Student Events Center against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Why the Rutgers Scarlet Knights will win

• The road team has won three of Rutgers’ last four games.
• Michigan State has lost the first half in six of its last seven night games.

Michigan State vs Rutgers Prediction

I’ll stick with the Spartans. Michigan State is coming off a nice road win over a pretty good Indiana team this past weekend. In that one the Spartans shot 49 percent from the field, with 50 percent (12 of 24) from outside and a 30-24 rebounding edge. Michigan State added 15 team assists and just 39.3 percent shooting allowed on defense. The Spartans have now won four straight games against some pretty intense competition.

Back on January 27, when these teams last met, Michigan State pulled off a tense road win in overtime, 88-79. The Spartans managed to shoot 49.1 percent from the field in that one while holding the Knights to just 40.3 percent on defense. Michigan State added a 44-19 advantage on the boards but did get messy with turnovers (14) during the win. The Spartans should be in firm control during this home rematch and I want the team to flourish.