The No. 15 Michigan Wolverines will host the Rutgers Scarlett Knights in a game that will feature two dynamic duos. The Wolverines trot out two seven-footers in their starting lineup, while the Scarlett Knights have two stars who could be selected second and third overall in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Rutgers has had a disappointing season so far but have won two games in a row; will they be able to keep up with Michigan, who’s won seven of their last eight?
Find out below as we make a prediction and take a look at the spread, total, and money line bets.
Rutgers vs. Michigan Betting Preview
All Rutgers vs. Michigan odds are from Fanduel Sportsbook and are correct as of Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025.
- Spread
Michigan -10.5 - Moneyline
Michigan -550, Rutgers +380 - Over/Under
154.5 Points - Game Time
Thursday, Feb. 27, 9:00 p.m. ET - Location
Crisler Center | Ann Arbor, MI - How To Watch
Peacock
Rutgers enters with a 13-13-2 record ATS this season, including 9-7-1 in conference play. As part of their two-game winning streak, they’ve covered each of their last two outings.
The Wolverines hold a 13-14 record ATS, having covered only six of 16 Big Ten matchups. In fact, despite their winning ways, they’ve only covered two of their last eleven games.
Not a particularly stout defense, the Scarlett Knights tend to go over the spread, with an over/under record of 15-12-1. However, only eight of their 17 conference games have reached the over — though they’ve exploded offensively in their last two games, averaging 92.0 ppg, causing both to go over.
The Wolverines score nearly 80 ppg as a team this season, but only 14 of 27 games have gone over the listed total. The under has been the successful play in six of their last eight games, including a 49-46 victory in their last outing.
Rutgers vs. Michigan CSN Power Rankings Line
Our rankings metric favors Michigan by 14.5 points, four points higher than the posted line of -10.5. That’s largely due to their position in our power rankings.
While the Wolverines hold down the No. 15 spot, the same spot they assume in the AP Poll, the Scarlett Knights are all the down at No. 133.
The game also takes place in Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, MI, another big advantage to Michigan.
Preview for Rutgers vs. Michigan
This will be the second meeting of the season between these two teams. On Feb. 1, the Wolverines defeated Rutgers 66-63 on their home court.
One member of the Scarlett Knights’ excellent freshman duo, guard Dylan Harper, was out with an injury for that game. His sidekick, forward Ace Bailey, scored only 10 points on three of 15 field-goal shooting.
If it weren’t for 20 points from sophomore guard Jamichael Davis and 14 points from senior guard Tyson Acuff off the bench, the game wouldn’t have been close.
Those two combine to average under 9.0 ppg on the season; Rutgers can’t expect another performance like that.
They’ll have to lean in part on the recovered Harper, who’s averaging team-highs in points (19.4 ppg), assists (4.2 apg), and steals (1.4 spg). The 6’6″ guard is able to get to his spots at will and has the firepower to single-handedly take over a game, as evidenced by his back-to-back 36- and 37-point performances in November.
Bailey also possesses the innate talent to dominate a game; he’s had 37- and 39-point outings already this season. Along with scoring 18.4 ppg, he also grabs a team-leading 7.2 rpg.
Those rebounds will be hard to come by against the Wolverines, as Bailey and starting center Lathan Somerville will have their hands full with Michigan’s frontcourt duo of 7’1″ senior center Vladislav Goldin and 7’0″ junior center Danny Wolf.
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While Goldin spends most of his time around the rim on both ends, averaging 15.6 ppg and 6.3 rpg, Wolf is more than comfortable on the perimeter. He’s one of the Wolverines’ primary ball-handlers when he’s on the floor, a threat from beyond the arc and a terrific passer, averaging 3.7 apg.
Guards Tre Donaldson and Roddy Gayle Jr. form a nice supporting tandem in the backcourt, each scoring in double figures.
Those four are a huge reason Michigan comes in with a 21-6 overall and 13-3 Big Ten record, slotting them in second place in the standings.
Although Harper and Bailey have been terrific as a duo, the Scarlet Knights have stumbled to a 14-14 record overall and only 7-10 in conference play, good for 10th place.
It won’t be an easy game for Rutgers, but they do have the firepower to pull off a major upset.
Best Bets and Final Score Prediction
Offensively, both teams are heading in different directions.
To be exact, when the Wolverines battled the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Monday evening, the game totaled 95 points — the exact amount of points the Scarlet Knights finished with in their victory the day before against the USC Trojans.
One thing will have to give, and it’s very difficult to decipher, but I’d go with the better team in this matchup, and that’s clearly Michigan. Considering that the under has been the right play in six of their last eight outings, their defense has been nail-biting as of late.
The last matchup features only 129 points — they would need to add an additional 26 points to that total to reach the over of 154.5. For those reasons, we’ll take the under in this one.
The numbers also suggest that the spread of -10.5—while it makes sense (especially according to our power rankings)—is too high. The Wolverines haven’t won by double digits since Jan. 19. Check that. They haven’t won by more than five points since then.
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That’s eight wins by a combined 26 points. Suggesting that they’ll suddenly break that trend and blow out the talented Scarlet Knights wouldn’t be too smart.
We’ll take Rutgers +10.5. I believe they’ll lose but still make it a game, as every Michigan outing has been for more than a month.
Picks: Under 154.5 Points, Rutgers +10.5
Prediction: Michigan 72, Rutgers 64
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