Illinois Fighting Illini vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights Prediction, 2/16/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Illinois Fighting Illini vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Date: Wednesday, February 16, 2022

Location: Jersey Mike's Arena in Piscataway, NJ

TV: BTN

Jersey Mike's Arena is the site where the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (15-9) will try to defeat the Illinois Fighting Illini (18-6) on Wednesday.

The Illinois Fighting Illini took the court against Northwestern and notched a win by a score of 73-66 in their last contest. In relation to personal fouls, the Fighting Illini ended up finishing with 14 and Northwestern totaled 22 personal fouls. They buried 7 of 24 attempts from beyond the perimeter. Northwestern finished shooting 61.1% when shooting free throws by burying 11 of 18 attempts. On top of that, Northwestern had 27 rebounds (3 offensive, 24 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Northwestern doled out 10 dimes and had 12 steals in this game. In the matter of the defense, Illinois allowed the other team to shoot 38.7% from the field on 24 out of 62 shooting. They also recorded 15 assists in this contest while forcing the opposition into 13 turnovers and getting 7 steals. Regarding grabbing rebounds, they collected 43 with 8 of them being on the offensive end. From the free throw line, the Fighting Illini knocked down 13 of their 19 attempts for a rate of 68.4%. Illinois walked away from the contest having earned a 43.1% FG percentage (25 out of 58) and converted 10 of their 29 shots from distance.

RJ Melendez is a player who was important for this contest. He finished the game at 75.0% from the floor but wasn't able to get a dime. He was on the court for 17 mins played and grabbed 6 rebounds. He left the arena with 14 points on 3 out of 4 shooting.

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Illinois comes into this one with a record of 18-6 on the campaign. They turn the ball over 13.0 times per contest and as a unit they commit 16.3 fouls per game. As a team, Illinois is pulling in 40.3 rebounds per game and is sitting with 375 assists for the season, which ranks 58th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. The Fighting Illini are hitting 36.6% on shots from distance (225 of 615) and 71.3% from the free throw line. They have an average of 76.6 points per contest (55th in Division 1) while shooting 45.9% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Fighting Illini are forcing 10.7 turnovers per contest while drawing 18.0 personal fouls. They rank 22nd in college hoops in giving up assists to the opposition with 233 relinquished on the campaign. The Fighting Illini are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 40.1% (581 of 1,450) and they concede 31.8 boards per game as a team. They give up 31.2% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 97th in college hoops in points per game allowed (66.3).

For their last game, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights got the victory with a final of 73-65 when they faced Wisconsin. In regard to cleaning up the glass, Rutgers permitted Wisconsin to grab 27 overall (7 on the offensive glass). They finished shooting 21.1% from distance by shooting 4 out of 19 and ended up going 9 out of 17 at the charity stripe (52.9%). The Scarlet Knights allowed Wisconsin to make 26 of 55 tries from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 47.3% for the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Scarlet Knights went 25 for 49 from the field which gave them a rate of 51.0%. When it comes to 3-pointers, Rutgers buried 7 of 12 attempts (58.3%). They were able to bury 16 of the free throw tries for a rate of 88.9%. Wisconsin was called for 18 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Scarlet Knights to the charity stripe for a total of 18 attempts. They also turned the ball over 13 times, while getting 10 steals for this contest. The Scarlet Knights were able to snag 25 defensive rebounds and 4 offensive boards totaling 29 for the matchup.

Paul Mulcahy ended up being a factor for the Scarlet Knights in the matchup. He scored 18 points in his 37 mins on the court and earned 5 dimes for the contest. He converted 6 out of 9 for the contest for a rate of 66.7%, and totaled 5 rebounds.

Rutgers has a record of 15-9 for the campaign. The Scarlet Knights are committing 15.5 fouls per contest and they shoot 71.1% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 15.8 times per game (40th in the nation) and they turn it over 11.8 times per game. Rutgers has accounted for 1,641 points for the year (68.4 per contest) and they average 36.2 rebounds per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Scarlet Knights are shooting 43.8% from the field, which ranks 201st in the nation.

The Rutgers defense concedes 34.6% on shots from beyond the perimeter (188 of 544) and opponents are knocking down 70.2% of their free throw shots. They relinquish 12.2 assists and 34.2 boards every game, which is ranked 150th and 159th in D-1. The Scarlet Knights are ranked 62nd in D-1 in PPG surrendered with 64.8. They are forcing their opponents into 12.8 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 41.0% from the floor (66th in D-1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Rutgers

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