College Hoops Preview: Purdue Boilermakers vs. Penn State Nittany Lions – Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024

The eighth-ranked Purdue Boilermakers (7-1) and Penn State Nittany Lions (7-1) will clash on Thursday, December 5 at 6:30 PM ET at the Bryce Jordan Center in University Park, Pennsylvania. For this college basketball betting opportunity, the Nittany Lions are favored with a point spread at -1.5 (-110).

Purdue Boilermakers Betting Preview

The Boilermakers have won three consecutive games, with their latest being an 80-78 performance over the 23rd-ranked Ole Miss Rebels in the Rady Children’s Invitational Championship game. Myles Colvin was the hero who grabbed a missed shot and scored with just 0.5 seconds remaining on the clock to seal it.

Trey Kaufman-Renn led with 25 points on 66 percent shooting from the field and had 13 rebounds. Braden Smith was also crucial to their win with 18 points and 11 assists.

Their offense connected on 54.2 percent of their shots and 45.5 percent from three point range. Defensively they held the Rebels to 42.6 percent shooting from the field and 41.7 percent from three. They did turn it over 12 times and forced seven on the Rebels, which needs to come down a bit in this upcoming matchup.

The Purdue Boilermakers are averaging 78.8 points per game and netting 49.9 percent of their shots. Their defense has allowed 68.1 points per game, which shows they have a solid margin of error to work with. 

Penn State Nittany Lions Betting Preview

The Nittany Lions have a great opportunity to displace a top-10 team in the country on their home court. Their most recent success is giving them some positive momentum, which was an 87-64 outing over the Buffalo Bulls.

Yanic Konan Niederhauser led the team with 27 points and an impressive 75 percent shooting from the field. Ace Baldwin Jr. had five points, but led with 10 assists.

They made 56.5 percent of their shots overall and 42.9 percent from deep. Defensively they were confident, as they held the Bulls to 41.5 percent shooting from the field and just 25.9 percent from three.

The Nittany Lions have been putting up 91.3 points per game and making 52.2 percent of their buckets. On the defensive end, they have held opponents to 67.5 points per contest, which offers an appealing spread.

Odds, Series Trends, and Free Pick

MyBookie has the Purdue Boilermakers vs. Penn State Nittany Lions betting odds available, which shows the Nittany Lions favored by 1.5-points. Market insights have the Boilermakers chances of winning at 58.5 percent.

The Nittany Lions have been impressive, but they have not faced the same level of competition as the Boilermakers have. This should be close, but the Boilermakers are appealing to cover the spread.

Final Pick: Purdue Boilermakers +1.5 (-110)