Bucknell vs Rutgers Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for Dec. 23 (Scarlet Knights Keep Home Dominance Going)

Bucknell vs Rutgers Game Info

2022-23 NCAA College Basketball Regular Season Game
Bucknell Bison (7-5, 1-4 Away) vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (7-4, 7-1 Home)
Date: Friday, Dec. 23, 2022
Time: 5:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Jersey Mike's Arena — Piscataway, NJ
Coverage: Big Ten Network

The 2022-23 college basketball season continues on Friday with an exciting matchup between the Bucknell Bison and Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Bucknell fell short in an 81-71 loss to Richmond on Wednesday. Xander Rice led the way with 19 points, but the Bison racked up 15 turnovers.

Meanwhile, Rutgers bounced back from a disappointing loss to Seton Hall with a dominant 81-57 win over Wake Forest on Saturday. Cam Spencer paced the offense with 15 points (5-of-5 shooting), while Paul Mulcahy tallied 7 assists. The Scarlet Knights shot 58.5% from the floor as a team.

Bucknell vs Rutgers Odds & Spread

All NCAA college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets.
Moneyline: BUCK: (+1400) | RUT: (-4000)
Spread: BUCK: +19.5 (-114) | RUT: -19.5 (-106)
Total: 132.5 —Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

Rutgers enters this contest as heavy home favorites on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 5 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 132.5 points, which is below average compared to Friday's projected totals.

Bucknell vs Rutgers Prediction & Pick

Rutgers is simply a different team when playing in front of its own fans. The Scarlet Knights are 7-1 at Jersey Mike's Arena this season and 49-9 at home across the last four years. The defense shines the brightest, allowing a measly 49.4 points on a 33.8% shooting percentage in the eight home games.

That is not good news for a Bucknell team that is 0-7 straight up in its last seven games against a Big Ten opponent. The Bison are tallying a disappointing 13.6 turnovers per game (T-No. 224 in NCAA) and only forcing 10.9 turnovers per game on defense (T-No. 323 in NCAA). That'll be the difference.

Rutgers is also 12-2 straight up in its last 14 games against a Patriot League opponent, so I'll side with the Scarlet Knights.

Final Score Prediction: Bucknell: 51 | Rutgers: 76

Bucknell vs Rutgers Betting Trends

- Bucknell is 0-7 straight up in its last seven games against a Big Ten opponent.
- The total has hit the over in six of Bucknell's last seven away games.
- Rutgers is 5-2 against the spread (ATS) in its last seven games.
- The total has hit the under in four of Rutgers' last five games.

Bucknell vs Rutgers Best Bet

Bucknell has played well on the road, which is proven by its 50.1% shooting percentage. However, Rutgers knows how to step it up. The Scarlet Knights are 3-1 against the spread (ATS) in their last four games as a double-digit favorite. Their average margin of victory in those games was 27.5 points.

Rutgers also enters this game 5-2 ATS in its last seven games and 12-5 ATS in its last 17 games played in December. It just blew out Wake Forest by 27 points, which is a team that then went on to defeat Duke. That kind of momentum doesn't just disappear. Back the Scarlet Knight on Friday night.

Bet: Rutgers Scarlet Knights -19.5 (-106)

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel. 

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.