Penn State Nittany Lions vs Michigan State Spartans Prediction, 2/9/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Penn State Nittany Lions vs Michigan State Spartans

Date: Tuesday, February 9, 2021

Location: Breslin Center in East Lansing, MI

TV: ESPN2

Odds/Point Spread: Penn State (+2)

The Penn State Nittany Lions (7-8) head to Breslin Center on Tuesday where they'll meet the Michigan State Spartans (9-7). The spread on this game has Michigan State as 2-point favorites. The over/under is set at 143.5.

Penn State steps onto the court with a record of 7-8 so far this year. They average 74.2 pts per contest (124th in D-1) while shooting 42.1% from the field. The Nittany Lions are shooting 34.9% on shots beyond the perimeter (131 of 375) and 72.9% from the charity stripe. As a team, Penn State is pulling down 35.9 rebounds per contest and has 190 assists so far this year, which has them ranked 234th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They cough up possession 11.9 times per game and as a squad they are committing 18.8 personal fouls per game. On the defensive end, the Nittany Lions are forcing 14.6 turnovers per contest while drawing 17.2 fouls. They are surrendering 31.3% on shots from beyond the arc and they are 267th in Division 1 in points per game allowed (74.3). The Nittany Lions defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 46.4% (393 of 847) and they surrender 34.4 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They rank 181st in college basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 207 conceded this year.

The Penn State Nittany Lions faced off with the Maryland Terrapins and notched a win by a score of 55-50 in their last contest. Penn State finished having earned a 31.5% FG percentage (17 of 54) and converted 5 of their 23 shots from beyond the perimeter. From the charity stripe, the Nittany Lions knocked down 16 of 18 attempts for a rate of 88.9%. Regarding grabbing rebounds, they compiled 37 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. They also doled out 10 dimes in this contest in addition to having 7 steals and 2 blocks. Pertaining to defending, Penn State let their opponent shoot 31.5% from the floor on 17 of 54 shooting. Maryland recorded 6 dimes and had 6 steals for the matchup. Additionally, the Terrapins collected 25 rebounds (5 offensive, 20 defensive) and had 2 rejections. Maryland went 81.3% from the free throw line by converting 13 of 16 attempts. They also buried 3 out of their 17 attempts from 3-point land.

Izaiah Brockington is a player who played a role in this contest. He had 13 points on 4 of 11 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 39 mins and totaled 6 boards. Brockington finished the contest at 36.4% from the floor and recorded 2 assists. Someone else that had an impact in this game for the Nittany Lions was Jamari Wheeler. He snagged 4 boards and tallied 2 assists. He walked away from this one shooting 37.5% from the field in the matchup by hitting 3-of-8 (11 points). When the final whistle was blown, Wheeler played 35 min.

Michigan State has a mark of 9-7 so far this season. When it comes to offense, the Spartans are shooting 42.5% from the field, which is ranked 261st in the nation. Michigan State has totaled 1,155 pts so far this year (72.2 per contest) and they average 38.9 rebounds per game. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 17.6 times per contest (12th in college basketball) and they lose possession via turnover 14.1 times per contest. The Spartans commit 19.6 fouls per game and they connect on 75.4% from the charity stripe. The Spartans are ranked 203rd in college hoops in PPG given up with 71.4. They are forcing 11.5 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 42.3% from the field (137th in D-1). The Michigan State defense surrenders 31.6% on shots from 3-point land (103 of 326) and opponents are knocking down 72.2% of their free throw attempts. They give up 13.1 dimes and 34.4 boards per game, which ranks them 184th and 147th in Division 1.

When they last played, the Michigan State Spartans got the victory with a final of 66-56 when they faced the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Spartans collected 35 defensive boards and 8 offensive rebounds for a total of 43 in the matchup. They stuffed 7 attempts while recording 7 steals in this game. The Cornhuskers were called for 17 personal fouls for this game which got the Spartans to the charity stripe for a total of 16 tries. They were able to make 14 of the free throw tries for a clip of 87.5%. In the matter of shots from beyond the arc, Michigan State converted 6 of 23 attempts (26.1%). When the final whistle blew, the Spartans finished the game shooting 23 for 59 from the field which had them at 39.0%. The Spartans permitted the Cornhuskers to knock down 21 of 58 attempts from the field which gave them a percentage of 36.2% for this contest. They finished shooting 17.6% from 3-point land by connecting on 3 out of 17 and finished the game at 11 of 24 from the charity stripe (45.8%). When it comes to team rebounding, Michigan State allowed Nebraska to pull down 29 overall (6 on the offensive side).

Joshua Langford pitched in for the Spartans in this game. He converted 7 of 12 in the matchup for a field goal percentage of 58.3%, which gave him 18 points. Langford pulled down 5 rebounds in his 24 minutes played and earned 2 assists in this matchup. Another guy who was a determining factor for Michigan State was Aaron Henry. He left the arena with 16 points in 32 minutes played by way of 6 out of 14 from the floor for the game. Henry ended the game having shot 42.9% from the floor while totaling 5 assists and 6 boards.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Penn State (+2)

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