For the 27th time, the Purdue Boilermakers and the Wisconsin Badgers will face off tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET. Tonight’s game is taking place at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin. This series stands at 13-13, with Wisconsin winning its previous two matchups against Purdue. The Boilermakers are 12-1 this season with their lone loss coming against No. 3 Iowa State. Meanwhile, Wisconsin is 9-4 but has won two consecutive games since losing two in a row.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Purdue is -6.5, with an over/under of 153.5 points, and both are -110. Check out my prediction for Purdue vs. Wisconsin below.
Purdue vs. Wisconsin (8:00 p.m. ET)
Wisconsin has two talented scorers in Nick Boyd (19.2 PPG) and John Blackwell (18.2 PPG), but it has only one other player who averages double digits. The Badgers average only 83.5 points per game and have the 62nd-best offensive rating on KenPom, while ranking No. 42 overall. Wisconsin has lost to two top-25 teams this season with BYU and Nebraska, but this is a significant step up in competition as Purdue is No. 5 in the country.
Purdue is No. 4 on KenPom, with the best offensive rating in the country and the 16th-best defensive rating. The Boilermakers are led by three talented veterans, Trey Kaufman-Renn, Fletcher Loyer, and Braden Smith. Kaufman-Renn averages a double-double of 14 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, while Smith is leading the country in assists per game with 9.5 while scoring 12.5 points. Smith has been very consistent this season, recording at least seven assists in 12 of 13 games.
This season, all 12 victories from Purdue have come by at least seven points. Also, they are 2-0 on the road this season, with wins over Alabama and Rutgers. Purdue has an elite offense, but their defense has been dominant as well. They have allowed 71 or fewer points in their previous eight wins. Although Wisconsin has a tremendous backcourt, Purdue has the players to limit their production in this matchup.
Since suffering their first loss of the season, Purdue has looked unbeatable, and their dominance should continue against Wisconsin. All four of the Badgers’ losses this season have been by seven or more points: 10 to Villanova, 30 to Nebraska, 11 to TCU, and 28 to TCU.
