Purdue Boilermakers guard Fletcher Loyer (2) celebrates a three-pointer during the second half against the Eastern Illinois Panthers at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Indiana.

The top-ranked Purdue Boilermakers (7-0) and Rutgers Scarlet Knights (5-3) meet Tuesday as they open Big Ten play in Piscataway, New Jersey. Tip-off at Jersey Mike’s Arena is at 8 p.m. ET (FS1). Let's analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's NCAA basketball odds around the Purdue vs. Rutgers odds and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions for the best bets.

Friday, Purdue came off a 6-day rest and a stretch of 4 straight games against KenPom top-75's with a 47-point rout over the Eastern Illinois Panthers. The -40 Boilermakers closed out a perfect November with a 109-62 (Over 141.5) win over EIU. Purdue, which went 13-7 in the Big Ten to tie for fourth place last season, swept both games from the Scarlet Knights in 2024-25.

Rutgers -- 8-12, 11th in the Big Ten last season -- competed in the Players Era Invitational in Las Vegas, Nevada, last week. The Knights went loss-loss-win against the Tennessee Volunteers (Tuesday), Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Wednesday) and UNLV Rebels (Thursday). In Thursday's game against -4 UNLV, RU prevailed 80-65 (Under 153.5) to snap a 3-game losing streak.

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Purdue at Rutgers odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 10:44 p.m. ET.

  • Moneyline (ML): Purdue -1400 (bet $1,400 to win $100) | Rutgers +775 (bet $100 to win $775)
  • Against the spread (ATS): Purdue -14.5 (-115) | Rutgers +14.5 (-105)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 146.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)

Purdue at Rutgers picks and predictions

Prediction

Purdue 80, Rutgers 63

Moneyline

No interest; PASS.

Against the spread

Purdue has won the last 3 meetings in this series ATS. In Piscataway, RU is 1-4 ATS; in December games, RU is 2-6 ATS in its last 8.

Look for plenty of Purdue tilt in this one, especially when it comes to rebounding and protecting the basketball. The Boilermakers are also an outstanding free-throw shooting team (76%), and the Knights have been tagged with a lot of fouls so far (20.6 per game).

Still, the bar to clear is a high one: peg PURDUE -14.5 (-115) as a very slight lean.

Over/Under

The Under is 4-1 across the Boilermakers' last 5 road tilts.

Nationally, both sides rank as slowest third when it comes to tempo. Neither is all too dependent on triples either. The Knights typically get a lot of looks from the foul line, but keeping foes away from the charity stripe is a Purdue strength.

The last 3 meetings in Piscataway have all landed on the Under and with plenty to spare in each case. TAKE THE UNDER 146.5 (-110).

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This article originally appeared on Sportsbook Wire: Purdue Boilermakers at Rutgers Scarlet Knights odds, picks and predictions

Reporting by Skip Snow, Sportsbook Wire / Sportsbook Wire

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