Penn State Nittany Lions vs Michigan State Spartans Prediction, 1/4/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Penn State Nittany Lions vs Michigan State Spartans

Date: Thursday, January 4, 2024

Location: Breslin Center in East Lansing, MI

TV: Peacock

Breslin Center is the location where the Michigan State Spartans (8-5) will attempt to defeat the Penn State Nittany Lions (7-6) on Thursday.

The Penn State Nittany Lions stepped onto the hardwood against Rider and notched a win by a score of 90-63 in their last game. Penn State ended with a 54.5% FG percentage (30 of 55) and buried 7 of 20 three-point attempts. At the free throw line, the Nittany Lions made 23 of 28 shots for a percentage of 82.1%. In regard to rebounding, they earned 27 with 6 of them being offensive. They also distributed 13 assists in this game as well as forcing the other team into 21 turnovers and having 13 steals. In relation to defense, Penn State let their opponent shoot 37.3% from the field on 22 out of 59 shooting. Rider dished out 10 dimes and had 8 steals for the contest. Moreover, Rider pulled down 30 rebounds (11 offensive, 19 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Rider went 89.5% from the free throw line by burying 17 of 19 tries. They also made 2 of their 16 tries from long range. In the matter of fouls, the Nittany Lions ended up walking away with 21 and Rider totaled 22 fouls.

Kanye Clary is someone who came through in this game. He accounted for 29 points on 12 out of 16 shooting. He played for 31 minutes and also collected 1 rebound. He shot 75.0% from the floor and distributed 3 assists.

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Penn State will enter this matchup with a win-loss mark of 7-6 for the season. They turn it over 11.4 times per game and as a unit are committing 17.7 fouls per game. As a unit, Penn State is grabbing 33.3 rebounds per contest and has totaled 152 dimes for the year, which is 311th in college hoops in terms of passing. The Nittany Lions are shooting 32.0% on shots from beyond the arc (105 of 328) and 73.0% from the charity stripe. They average 77.5 points per outing (127th in D-1) while hitting 43.9% from the floor.

On defense, the Nittany Lions are able to force 16.8 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 18.5 personal fouls. They are conceding 28.9% from beyond the arc and they are ranked 163rd in Division 1 in opponents PPG (70.3). The Nittany Lions defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 42.7% (326 of 764) and they relinquish 38.8 boards per contest as a team. They currently rank 189th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 170 relinquished on the campaign.

In their last game, the Michigan State Spartans went home victorious with a score of 87-75 against Indiana State. The Spartans were able to corral 24 defensive rebounds and 15 offensive boards totaling 39 for the contest. They turned the ball over 11 times, while earning 7 steals in the matchup. Indiana State was called for 22 fouls in this matchup which took the Spartans to the charity stripe for a total of 27 attempts. They were able to knock down 23 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 85.2%. Pertaining to three-point shots, Michigan State made 6 of their 17 tries (35.3%). Overall, the Spartans shot 29 out of 61 from the field which had them sitting at 47.5%. The Spartans allowed Indiana State to knock down 25 out of their 57 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 43.9% for this game. They finished the game shooting 40.0% from 3-point land by shooting 14 out of 35 and ended up shooting 11 out of 17 at the free throw line (64.7%). Regarding how they rebounded, Michigan State allowed Indiana State to get 26 in total (7 on the offensive side).

Tyson Walker ended up being a factor for the Spartans for this contest. He buried 5 of 15 in this game for a field goal rate of 33.3%, and had 2 rebounds. He recorded 22 points in his 31 mins on the court and earned 5 dimes for the matchup.

Michigan State has a mark of 8-5 on the campaign. In terms of offensive execution, the Spartans are connecting on 47.8% from the field, which ranks 53rd in college basketball. Michigan State has 1,004 pts this year (77.2 per game) and they pull in 37.3 rebounds per game. They are assisting teammates 18.3 times per contest (14th in college basketball) and they are losing possession via turnover 10.9 times per contest. The Spartans are committing 16.3 fouls every game and they connect on 69.7% from the free throw line.

The Michigan State defense allows 30.8% from downtown (100 of 325) and opponents are connecting on 71.3% of their free throw attempts. They allow 12.3 assists and 34.5 rebounds per contest, which is ranked 153rd and 158th in Division 1. The Spartans on defense are ranked 46th in college basketball in PPG allowed with 64.5. They have forced 13.2 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 38.4% from the field (19th in college hoops).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Michigan State

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