The Purdue Boilermakers take on the Florida State Seminoles. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Purdue Florida State prediction and pick.
The Purdue Boilermakers lost Jaden Ivey to the NBA. That's a top-five draft pick. One might reasonably think that would have negatively affected how the Boilermakers play. Instead, they actually look better with Ivey not on the floor. One thing worth remembering about last season's Purdue team is that Trevion Williams and Zach Edey could not play together on the floor with Ivey. Having those two big men on court at the same time seemed like a good idea in theory, but it didn't work out in practice. Floor balance, effectiveness on offense, and overall output suffered with those two together on the court. Edey is thriving this season with less clutter on the court and also in light of the knowledge that he and Trevion Williams don't have to fight for minutes. There is no ambiguity about who the Boilermakers' best big man truly is. The Boilermakers have a much more coherent and fluid team which blends together seamlessly. It's a much better fit in terms of roles and responsibilities for head coach Matt Painter, whose team might not be as physically imposing as last season's group, but which plays so much better as a five-man unit. The compatibility of players is greatly better than what it was last season. That's why Purdue is functioning so well. The Boilermakers have blown out both Gonzaga and Duke in the past week. They aren't ranked No. 1 in the polls, but they probably should be. No team in America is playing better than the Boilermakers right now. Maybe this will be the team to snap the Boilermakers' wrenching and frustrating Final Four drought, which stretches all the way back to 1980. That Final Four season was just before Gene Keady took over as head coach. Painter is Keady's protege. He is trying to finish the job Keady started but could not complete in West Lafayette.
Florida State is having the exact opposite season of Purdue. Whereas the Boilermakers are putting all the pieces together and fitting them perfectly, Florida State has a bunch of broken pieces, dealing with all sorts of injuries which have left coach Leonard Hamilton shorthanded. The Seminoles lack the bodies needed to give Hamilton the roster he needs in order to compete. The lack of depth and able-bodied quality on the roster has caused Florida State to lose seven of its first eight games this season, with the only win coming against Mercer. FSU has lost to Nebraska and Siena and Troy and a number of other less-than-great teams, something which was unthinkable just two years ago, when the Seminoles contended for the ACC championship and were a high seed in the NCAA Tournament. Florida State has gone from being a Sweet 16-level program to a doormat in the ACC. The extremely bad luck on the injury front has been the main reason for this decline, but anything Hamilton has tried to do with his available players has not worked, either.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Purdue-Florida State College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Purdue-Florida State Odds
Purdue Boilermakers: -16.5 (-104)
Florida State Seminoles: +16.5 (-118)
Over: 136.5 (-110)
Under: 136.5 (-110)
Why Purdue Could Cover the Spread
This is a total and severe mismatch, and there really isn't anything else which needs to be said. Purdue is destroying Gonzaga and Duke. It should be able to rout Florida State.
Why Florida State Could Cover the Spread
The Seminoles are sick and tired of hearing how bad and undermanned they are. They could rally around the flag against a Purdue team which might be overconfident.
Final Purdue-Florida State Prediction & Pick
This is a game in which Purdue, flying high and playing the best basketball of any team in the country, takes off and flies away from Florida State in a rout.
Final Purdue-Florida State Prediction & Pick: Purdue -16.5
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