College Basketball Pick: #22 Ohio State Buckeyes at Northwestern Wildcats

The #22 Ohio State Buckeyes (15-4 Overall, 6-0 Big Ten) visit the unranked Northwestern Wildcats (11-8 Overall, 2-4 Big Ten). The two teams will tipoff tonight at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. OSU is second in the Big Ten and one-half game out of first place. The Huskies are 10th in the conference and sit 4.5 games away from first. Our Ohio State plays Northwestern 2018 NCAA basketball Big Ten pick has the Buckeyes at -3.0 and the over/under at either 138 or 138.5. Here is how we see this Big Ten matchup going, as the Ohio State Buckeyes battle to keep their conference record perfect.

Recent History

OSU is 9-1 over its past 10 with its only loss being to 85-72 to #5 North Carolina on Dec. 23.
On Jan. 7, they beat the #1 Michigan State Spartans 80-64. Thus far all of their Big Ten wins have been by 11 points or more. The Northwestern Wildcats have lost three of their last five games. Each of the losses, which were to Penn State, Nebraska, and Indiana, was by 15 points or more.

Matchup

OSU and Northwestern are each allowing opponents 67.2 PPG. The Buckeyes are averaging 79.4 PPG while the Cats have been putting up on average 73.3 PPG. OSU is better in field goal percentage 49.4 to 42.9 and rebounds 37.1 to 34.5, while the Wildcats are better when it comes to free throw percentage .763 to .726 and they have made 20 more three-point shots.

Players to Watch

For OSU, junior forward Keita Bates-Diop (20.3 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 53 FG%) tops the team in points per game and rebounds. Guard C.J. Jackson brings 4.4 APG and 13.3 PPG to tonight’s contest. Four players are double-digit scorers, while together those four players have been good for 23.7 RPG. For the Cats, senior guard Bryant McIntosh (13.1 PPG, 5.8 APG) is tops in assists and leads the team in free throw percentage with a 95% success rate. Senior guard Scottie Lindsey, who’s averaging 14.0 PPG, leads the team in scoring, while junior center Dererk Pardon is massive force in the paint, averaging 7.1 RPG.

Our Ohio State Plays Northwestern 2018 NCAA Basketball Big Ten Pick

We like the Buckeyes in this game and our Ohio State plays Northwestern 2018 NCAA basketball Big Ten pick is OSU at -3.0. Also, we like the over at 138.0. We expect over 140 points to be scored in this game.

Summary Buckeyes at Wildcats Picks- OSU at -3.0 and over 138.0