Rutgers vs Michigan State 2/5/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Michigan State Spartans (17-4) vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (12-9)
February 5, 2022 4:00 pm EDT
The Line: Rutgers Scarlet Knights +5.5 ; Over/Under:
(Get latest betting odds)
The Michigan State Spartans and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights meet Saturday in college basketball action from the RAC. Michigan State is 17-4 this year. The Spartans took out Maryland in their last game. As for Rutgers, they’re 12-9 and coming off a loss to Northwestern. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Michigan State has rebounded well from adversity so far this year. The Spartans have yet to lose consecutive games. (They’ve fallen to only Kansas, Baylor, Northwestern and Illinois). Michigan State has taken out Michigan and Maryland in their last pair.
On Tuesday versus Maryland, the Spartans held a 35-25 advantage in the first half. Michigan State had to hang on form there but ended up with a 65-63 victory. Malik Hall was tops on 16 points, and Marcus Bingham added 10 options with six boards.
Over on the Rutgers side, they kicked off the year on an 11-6 run with losses to DePaul, Lafayette, UMass, Illinois, Seton Hall and Penn State. It’s been a 1-3 run since with losses to Minnesota, Maryland and Northwestern.
Matched up against Northwestern on Tuesday, the Knights fought back from a 25-43 halftime deficit with 45 points in the second. Rutgers couldn’t hang on in OT and lost 79-78. Paul Mulcahy topped the squad on his 31 points and seven boards.
The Knights are 4-1 ATS in their last five at home and the over is 5-2 in their last seven after an ATS win. The under is 4-1 in Rutgers’ last five after a straight-up loss.
Meanwhile, the Spartans are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 after an ATS loss and 6-1 ATS in their last seven road games. The under is 7-3 in Michigan State’s last 10 road games.
PICK: I’m probably going to stay with Michigan State. I’m staying away from this one, though; it’s notoriously tough picking Big Ten games these days. That said, the Spartans haven’t been as dominant as usual over the last three; they’ve got a one-point loss to Illinois and a two-point win over Maryland in that time. Still, Michigan State has been as reliable as anyone else in the conference lately and I think they’ll do well here. If the Spartans can get their offense going early I don’t think Rutgers has the gas to keep up.
