Rutgers vs Nebraska: Odds, Predictions & Key Insights | January 16, 2025
Written by: Colby Marchio
Last Update: Thu Jan 16, 2025, 2:02 pm ET
Read Time: 4 minutes
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This Big Ten showdown is all about the Cornhuskers' scoring. Nebraska returns home after two tough road losses, hosting a Rutgers team battling inconsistency and road struggles. The Scarlet Knights have shown serious weaknesses in rebounding, perimeter defense, and foul discipline away from home. With Nebraska thriving in their home environment, expect points to pile up in Lincoln.
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Rutgers vs Nebraska Odds
How will Nebraska respond after two straight road losses?
Odds are courtesy of BetOnline, a longtime fixture among the top online sports betting sites. Check out our BetOnline sportsbook review, then bag a big bonus (100% if your first deposit is with Bitcoin, Ethereum, or another cryptocurrency) to bet on College Basketball games.
Spread
Rutgers: +9 (-105)
Nebraska: -9 (-115)
Total
Over: 146.5 (-110)
Under: 146.5 (-110)
Moneyline
Rutgers: +360
Nebraska: -450
Rutgers vs Nebraska Best Bet
Things that do not matter for this Big Ten classic: spreads, sides, and the game total. The only thing that matters is the Cornhuskers scoring. Nebraska is coming off back-to-back road losses to Iowa and No. 17 Purdue. Now, they host Rutgers, a team fresh off a win over UCLA at home—a result that holds little weight considering the chaos of their season and the off-court drama surrounding their program. Traveling across the country after playing on Monday is a tough challenge, especially for a Scarlet Knights team that has struggled on the road all season.
Rutgers' Road Struggles
In three true road games, Rutgers is one of the worst rebounding teams in the nation, ranked 317th in offensive rebounding and 11th worst in defensive rebounding, according to Bart Torvik. In seven games away from home, they have struggled to defend the perimeter, ranking 225th in three-point defense. They also sit in the mid-200s in effective field goal percentage defense and free-throw rate defense. These are all significant weaknesses because Nebraska ranks 72nd in free-throw rate offense and 88th in free-throw percentage at home. Rutgers has been allowing 83.7 points per game on the road this season.
Nebraska at Home
At home, Nebraska thrives. Like many college teams, they play significantly better in their own gym and struggle away from it. This season, the Cornhuskers are averaging 82.9 points per game at home, compared to just 71 on the road. That home-court advantage is a game-changer for these young players.
Nebraska boasts a fairly efficient offense at home, taking a decent number of three-pointers and hitting over 35% of them, ranking 148th in the nation from beyond the arc. Defensively, they excel at forcing turnovers, sitting in the top 100 nationally. Forcing turnovers and capitalizing on Rutgers' mistakes will be critical for Nebraska.
The tempo of this game should be faster than expected. Nebraska likes to push the pace at home, ranking inside the top 100 in tempo. Rutgers already favors a quicker style of play, ranking in the top 40 for pace away from home.
If both teams are running, Nebraska's team total should have plenty of opportunities to go over. Given how effectively the Cornhuskers draw fouls and how often Rutgers puts teams on the line, the more the clock stops, the better it is for Nebraska's scoring.
I am backing the Cornhuskers to exceed their team total tonight at home against Rutgers.
Bet: Nebraska Team Total Over 77.5 (-125) on BetOnline
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Former D1 (club) baseball player, Colby has been betting since his college days at DePaul, where he had to endure the worst collegiate basketball the Big East has ever seen. He is an advanced analytics nerd and has never seen an underdog he has not liked. Hot. Corn. Bull. It does not matter the dog he loves them all.
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