It will be a battle between Big Ten opponents when the No. 24 Purdue Boilermakers (14-3) welcome the Penn State Nittany Lions (10-7) to Mackey Arena. The game gets underway at 8:30 pm ET on Wednesday, Jan. 13 and will air on BTN.
The Boilermakers lost to Illinois 84-70 on Sunday. P.J. Thompson played well for the Boilermakers, finishing with 12 points, four assists, and two steals. The Nittany Lions, meanwhile, are coming off an ugly 92-65 loss to Michigan State on Sunday. Shep Garner had a good shooting night, leading the team with 19 points.
The Purdue defense should have a clear edge in terms of eFG%. It ranks second in the nation in forcing misses (opponents’ eFG% of 40.6%), while the Penn State offense is 302nd with a mark of 46.7%.
The Boilermakers are attempting to build on their records of 14-3 Straight Up (SU) and 9-4 Against The Spread (ATS). Purdue is excellent from the perimeter with 141 three-pointers made (8.0 per game), the 50th-most in the country. Purdue has an edge in the rebounding department for this game, where it racks up an average of 42.5 rebounds per game. Few teams in the nation have a higher assist-to-turnover ratio than Purdue, which ranks 33rd at 1.41. As for the Purdue defense, teams have to fight for open shots against the Boilermakers, who have the best opponent field-goal percentage in the country at .359.
On the other side, the Nittany Lions head into the game with records of 8-7-1 ATS and 10-7 SU. Don’t expect Penn State to give away the ball much on offense, where its 11.0 turnovers per game ranks 31st in the country.
This game marks the first time these teams will play this season. The last time these conference rivals played, Purdue won, bringing its SU record to 8-2 over Penn State in their most recent games. At 5-5, they are even ATS. Purdue held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five games, while Penn State wasn’t able to do so in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – Purdue, ATS Winner – Purdue
Notes
Purdue is 14-3 SU in its last 17 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Purdue’s last 6 games.
Purdue is 17-2 SU in its last 19 games at home.
Purdue is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Penn State.
The total has gone UNDER in 16 of Purdue’s last 22 games when playing Penn State.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Purdue’s last 6 games when playing at home against Penn State.
Penn State lost its last game by a 27-point margin. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, Purdue is 8-0. Penn State is 0-3 in blowouts this season.
The Purdue Boilermakers have a defensive rating of 88.7 (ranked fifth), while the Penn State Nittany Lions have an offensive rating of 102.8 (ranked 233rd).
Purdue has an average field goal percentage of 46.7%. Penn State is a subpar 1-5 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Purdue Boilermakers rank lower for their field goal percentage (68th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (52nd), but the Penn State Nittany Lions have a better FG% ranking (285th) than eFG% ranking (302nd).
The Purdue Boilermakers rank 13th in assists per game with an average of 18.3. The Penn State Nittany Lions are among the worst in the country with 9.3 assists per game (ranked 348th).
Purdue, the 22nd-ranked team in blocked shots, registers an average of 5.6 per game. Penn State ranks 65th with 4.7.
Penn State ranks 187th in offensive rebounds, while Purdue ranks at second in defensive rebounds.
On average, Penn State forces a turnover rate of 18.4%. When Purdue turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 7-3 record.
