Big Ten foes will clash Sunday afternoon as the Ohio State Buckeyes (11-15, 3-12) take on the No. 3 Purdue Boilermakers (23-4, 12-4). The Boilermakers will host this one at Mackey Arena, with tipoff scheduled for 1:00 pm ET.
The Boilermakers are overwhelming favorites in this one playing at home. They are -950 to win, while the Buckeyes’ moneyline sits at +610. The spread features Ohio State as 12.5-point underdogs (-110), and the over/under for total points is 138.5.
Buckeyes Look For Massive Road Upset
For an Ohio State Buckeyes’ program that is usually synonymous with basketball success, this has been an extremely tough year for head coach Chris Holtmann’s crew. At just 3-12 in the Big Ten, they are second to last in the conference.
Not only do they have the tall task of beating Purdue, they have to face them on the road, where the Buckeyes are just 1-8 this season. To make matters worse, the Buckeyes have lost seven straight entering this game.
Freshman forward Brice Sensabaugh leads the way for Ohio State’s offense. He is currently averaging 16.3 points per game on 48.1% shooting. He is also averaging 5.2 rebounds and one assist per game.
Other contributors for Ohio State include Justice Sueing (12.2 points, five rebounds) and Zed Key (10.8 points, 7.5 rebounds).
Purdue Hopes To Bounce Back Against Struggling Buckeyes
Despite still sitting comfortably atop the Big Ten rankings, Purdue has struggled a bit as of late, losing two games in a row. They are hoping that Sunday’s game against the Buckeyes will give them some confidence as they make a push to end the regular season on a strong note.
Unfortunately for Purdue fans, they have lost back-to-back games against Northwestern and Maryland, both of which sit in the top four in the Big Ten standings. Still, they will look forward to returning to their home court, where they are 12-1 on the season.
Purdue currently ranks 113th in scoring, averaging 73.2 points per game (76.2 at home). They are led by big man Zach Edey, who leads the team in points (22), rebounds (12.8), and blocks (2.3) per game.
The Boilermakers are especially tough on defense. They rank 14th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing opponents an average of just 61.9 points per game.
Take Purdue To Win And Cover
Usually, this would be a spot where there could be concern on Purdue overlooking Ohio State, but with the Boilermakers’ struggles as of late, this feels like a get-right game.
Not only should Purdue be able to shut down Ohio State on the defensive side, but the Buckeyes just don’t have an answer for Zach Edey down low.
Ohio State comes into this one 0-7, both straight up and against the spread in their last seven games. They are also 0-5 against the spread in their last five road games.
As for Purdue, they are 16-4 in their last 20 games and 5-1 in their last six home games against the Buckeyes.
Especially playing at home, expect Purdue to dominate this game from the tipoff. Take Purdue to both win and to cover the 12.5-point spread (-110).
