The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (22-10) meet the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (18-13) Wednesday night with the winner advancing as a No. 11 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Championship Tournament. The contest at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio. is slated to tip off at 9:10 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Notre Dame vs. Rutgers odds and lines, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Notre Dame lost to Virginia Tech in its first game of the ACC Tournament, and the Irish are 3-3 in their last six games. Turnovers plagued the Irish in a couple of those losses, uncharacteristic for a team that ranks in the top-30 in turnover avoidance. The Irish are a top-shelf team when it comes to 3-point shooting. Since Feb. 12, they’ve shot a robust 43.8% on triples.
Rutgers lost to Iowa in their Big Ten tourney first-rounder. After consecutive wins over Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Illinois in early February, the Scarlet Knights have gone just 2-4. A normally strong RU defense has yielded 71.0 points per game over that span. The Knights have also been below average on the boards of late.
See also: Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports
Notre Dame vs. Rutgers odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:54 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Notre Dame -115 (bet $115 to win $100) | Rutgers -105 (bet $100 to win $105)
- Against the spread (ATS): Notre Dame -1.5 (-102) | Rutgers +1.5 (-122)
- Over/Under (O/U): 133.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Notre Dame vs. Rutgers odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Notre Dame 68, Rutgers 66
The winner of this game will take on sixth-seeded Alabama Friday in San Diego. There is a bit of a thought that Rutgers could give UA a tough match-up challenge. But RU is wildly inconsistent, and Notre Dame’s offense is on a track good enough to support a FIGHTING IRISH (-115) play here.
The lean here is a small one as the score-from-distance Irish are quite reliant on the 3-ball. Maybe too much so. Of the four play-in games in Dayton, this final contest has the most betting gray area. Consider a partial-unit play.
Against the spread
The Scarlet Knights are 1-4-1 ATS in their last six games overall. The Fighting Irish are 6-0 ATS in their last six games following a ATS loss.
Again, with a whisper of a lean, the play is on NOTRE DAME -1.5 (-102).
Over/Under
If the sides are among the most unlikable of the First Four, the O/U is most certainly the most unlikable of the group of games in Dayton.
Trigger signals come in on both sides, and this is a play best left … well, unplayed. PASS.
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