Rutgers vs Central Connecticut State 1/1/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Central Connecticut State Blue Devils will travel to Jersey Mike’s Arena to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights this Saturday night in College Basketball action.

The Central Connecticut State Blue Devils improved to 4-10 on the season after defeating the St. Francis (BKN) Terriers, 67-55, on Friday afternoon. Central Connecticut State trailed by a 37-28 margin at halftime, however, Central Connecticut State was outstanding defensively in the 2^nd half and was able to pull away for the victory after closing out the final 7:57 on a 22-2 run. Central Connecticut State shot 52.2% from the field & 28.6% from beyond the arc while allowing St. Francis (BKN) to 42.0% shooting from the field & 32.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Blue Devils was Andre Snoddy who had 14 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, & 1 steal.

Coming into their matchup against St. Francis (BKN), Central Connecticut State was averaging 63.4 ppg on 40.0% shooting from the field. The Blue Devils were averaging 7.2 three-pointers per game on 33.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Central Connecticut State has been led by Nigel Scantlebury (12.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.1 spg), Ian Krishnan (9.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg), Tre Mitchell (7.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.3 apg), & Andre Snoddy (6.7 ppg, 6.2 rpg).

Defensively, Central Connecticut State was allowing their opponents to average 75.8 ppg on 46.3% shooting from the field. The Blue Devils had a rebound margin of -6.8 and a turnover margin of -0.8.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights improved to 6-5 on the season after defeating the Maine Black Bears, 80-64, this past Thursday. Rutgers had no trouble generating offense against Maine and easily cruised to victory in the 2^nd half after going into halftime with a 42-30 lead. Rutgers shot 52.9% from the field & 50.0% from beyond the arc while holding Maine to just 42.1% shooting from the field & 40.9% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Scarlet Knights was Ron Harper Jr. who had 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, & 2 steals.

On the season, Rutgers is averaging 67.1 ppg on 41.5% shooting from the field. The Scarlet Knights are averaging 5.6 three-pointers per game on 31.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Rutgers has been led by Ron Harper Jr. (16.1 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.4 spg), Clifford Omoruyi (11.8 ppg, 6.8 rpg), Geo Baker (10.9 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 3.9 apg), & Caleb McConnell (7.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2.4 spg).

Defensively, Rutgers is allowing their opponents to average 66.9 ppg on 41.2% shooting from the field. The Scarlet Knights have a rebound margin of 0.5 and a turnover margin of 1.0.

The Blue Devils 8-2-1 ATS in their last 11 Saturday games. The Scarlet Knights are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games vs. a team with a winning & below .400 and just 2-8-1 ATS in their last 11 games overall.

Central Connecticut State has struggled on both ends of the court this season as the Blue Devils come into this game ranked just 317^th in scoring offense, 323^rd in FG%, & 309^th in scoring defense. Rutgers has been led by their defense which ranks t-142^nd in scoring defense, however, the offense has struggled at times as the Scarlet Knights come into this matchup ranked just 278^th in scoring offense & 291^st in FG%.

Central Connecticut State is not a very good team on either end of the court, and I think their offense is going to struggle in this one. Rutgers didn’t cover ATS vs. Maine, however, that was their first game in over two weeks and as I think the Scarlet Knights come out sharper in this one, I think they are up by 20+ at halftime and do enough in the 2^nd half to cover this large spread. Good Luck!