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It's time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a Rutgers-Alabama prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Rutgers Alabama.
Alabama came up with a big win over Houston on Tuesday. The Crimson Tide trailed for much of the game and were still down by four inside the final three minutes, but they kept battling and were able to send Houston to overtime. Alabama was able to get stops and lock down the Houston offense in crunch time. Alabama struggled to guard Houston star LJ Cryer at times, but no one else in the Houston lineup was able to seriously hurt Bama's defense, certainly not when it mattered most.
Alabama guard Mark Sears was a total non-factor in Alabama's win over Illinois last week. Coach Nate Oats invited him to come back into the game in the second half, but Sears said the younger players who were on the floor deserved to stay in the game, given how well they were playing. To some, it might have seemed like a star player not wanting responsibility. In truth, it was a mature response by a player who saw what was working for his team, even though he personally wasn't having a good night. Everyone knew Sears would need to bounce back from that performance against Illinois. He did so against Houston, scoring 24 points and being the go-to guy the Tide need if they want to get back to the Final Four this season. Stacking quality wins over Illinois and Houston in the space of a week re-establishes Alabama as a high-level team. The Tide have dramatically improved their overall resume after losing at Purdue.
Bama's next opponent is Rutgers, which — like the Tide — went overtime to win a game on Tuesday night. Rutgers beat Notre Dame 85-84 in a game which was close the whole way. It was nip and tuck throughout the second half and overtime in a game where neither team gained any real separation. Rutgers badly needed that win after losing to Kennesaw State on Sunday in a game it trailed by 21 points at one point. Now Rutgers needs a high-end win to really boost its resume and offset the Kennesaw State loss. Here's a huge opportunity for the Scarlet Knights.
Bettors, here's an important piece of information, just to make sure: This is a neutral-site game in Las Vegas during Feast Week.
Here are the Rutgers-Alabama College Basketball Odds, courtesy of FanDuel
College Basketball Odds: Rutgers-Alabama Odds
Rutgers: +11.5 (-110)
Moneyline: +520
Alabama: -11.5 (-110)
Moneyline: -750
Over: 159.5 (-105)
Under: 159.5 (-115)
How to Watch Rutgers vs Alabama
Time: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT
TV: TBS
Stream: fuboTV (Free Trial)
Why Rutgers Will Cover The Spread/Win
The betting situation for this game is fascinating. Many will say that Alabama is much more than 11.5 points better than Rutgers, and right now, in terms of raw quality and an evaluation of overall performance, that's probably true. However, Alabama just did play a draining overtime game against a quality Houston team. Alabama is bound to play a worse game here. The Tide are likely to be tired and drag through this game. Rutgers knows this is a huge opportunity to get a resume-boosting win. The Scarlet Knights might have a lot more jump and juice. That's why the line is only 11.5 points and not 14.5 or 15.5. Rutgers might still cover. It can lose by 11 and still cover. If Alabama plays half of this game in an exhausted haze, that might be enough for Rutgers to stay close and cash some tickets.
Why Alabama Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Crimson Tide got Mark Sears back in form. That's huge for them. Also, Rutgers played an overtime game against Notre Dame. It's not as though Rutgers will be farm-fresh for this game. The Scarlet Knights will be as tired as Bama, neutralizing any Crimson Tide fatigue.
Final Rutgers-Alabama Prediction & Pick
The fact that these teams both played OT games on Tuesday makes this a really hard game to calibrate. It's best to wait for a live play instead of making a pregame wager.
Final Rutgers-Alabama Prediction & Pick: Rutgers +11.5
