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Happy Valentine's Day ladies and gentlemen!! To kick off your day full of love, what better to kick up your feet and relax to this entertaining showdown on the college hardwood as the Nebraska Cornhuskers take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights for Big Ten action. Join us for our college basketball odds series where our Nebraska-Rutgers prediction and pick will be made.
Although they enter this showdown with a 12-14 losing record, the Cornhuskers are fresh off of a solid win over Wisconsin at home in overtime by a score of 73-63. The recent victory was Nebraska's second win in their past three games as they look to secure some much-needed momentum come conference tournament time in just a few weeks.
As for Rutgers, the Scarlet Knights have seen their postseason odds take a slight hit after dropping back-to-back games to Illinois and Indiana on the road. Nevertheless, Rutgers still enters play with a 16-9 record as the door for them to clinch a March Madness berth still remains on the table.
Here are the Nebraska-Rutgers college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Basketball Odds: Nebraska-Rutgers Odds
Nebraska: +13.5 (-105)
Rutgers: -13.5 (-105)
Over: 131.5 (-110)
Under: 131.5 (-110)
How To Watch Nebraska vs. Rutgers
TV: Big Ten Network
Stream: B1G+
Time: 8:00ET/5:00 PT
*Watch college basketball LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Nebraska Could Cover The Spread
Article Continues Below
Without a shadow of doubt, the Huskers' latest win was just what the doctor ordered. By the time Wisconsin finally went down in defeat past regulation, Nebraska had shot 36% from deep and boasted four players that recorded double-digit points on the night. Alas, none were more impressive than guard Keisei Tominaga and his 22 points from the floor, as he was also red-hot from behind the arc as he connected on 5-11 shot attempts from deep.
While Nebraska may find themselves in the midst of some dry spells when going up against a Rutgers defensive unit that only surrenders 59.1 PPG, the one area that the Huskers cannot afford to get bested in will be in turning over the basketball. Clearly, playing a clean brand of ball will do wonders for the Huskers when it comes to gaining scoring chances each time down the floor, but if they are sloppy from the jump, Nebraska could find themselves in a deep hole early. At first glance, Nebraska is averaging roughly 13 giveaways per game this season and did commit 15 turnovers despite edging out the Badgers last time out.
Not to mention, but it will provide to be extremely vital for the Huskers to get off to a better start this time around. In their dramatic victory over Wisconsin, it was Nebraska that found themselves down a whopping 17 points in the second half before embarking on an epic comeback for the ages. Although this makes for a better story, there is no doubt that the Huskers would benefit greatly if they can jump out to an early lead during the first half to silence the Rutgers home crowd.
Why Rutgers Could Cover The Spread
Regardless of the mini losing-streak that the Scarlet Knights enter play with, this is still a fundamentally sound squad that rarely inflicts damage upon themselves.
In order to cover the spread at home versus the Cornhuskers, Rutgers needs to improve upon their usual steady defense that has made life way to easy for opposing offenses in their past two games combined. Most of the time, it is Rutgers suffocating and swarming defense that makes life difficult for opponents, but the Scarlet Knights allowed the Hoosiers and Fighting Illini to shoot lights out from downtown. If there is one true equalizer for an underdog crew in college basketball, it is finding a rhythm from three-point land, as this is something that Rutgers can't allow Nebraska to feel comfortable in doing in this game.
Outside of the fact that Rutgers can't allow open threes from a below-average shooting Huskers squad, the Scarlet Knights also could improve their chances of covering the spread by sorting out their struggles on the offensive side of the floor. Like previously mentioned, Rutgers boasts one of the more elite defenses in all of the country, but it is their own shooting woes that have plagued them far too frequently this season.
With that being said, expect Rutgers to attack Nebraska's shaky defense with a heavy dosage of drives to the rim to generate contact in hopes to get the Cornhuskers in foul trouble from the get-go. Whether it's center Clifford Omoruyi or guard Cam Spencer pacing Rutgers in the scoring department, the Scarlet Knights will stand no chance in this one if they can't score at least 70 points in this contest, something they have not done dating back to Feb. 1st.
Final Nebraska-Rutgers Prediction & Pick
Oftentimes, it is wise to side with the home team in the college basketball world in regards to covering the spread, and even though the line currently stands at a monumental 13.5 points at the moment, Rutgers has been more efficient in covering this season with a 16-9 record ATS.
Final Nebraska-Rutgers Prediction & Pick: Rutgers -13.5 (-105)
