NCAA Men’s Basketball: Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs Purdue Boilermakers – Possible Lineups and Predictions

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are back with NCAA Men’s Basketball action as they take on the Purdue Boilermakers. After being ranked in the preseason for the first time since 1976, the Scarlet Knights are living up to expectations.

They started as #24 in the preseason and are currently at #14. This has come via a 6-1 run so far, and their only loss came in their last game against Ohio State. It was a surprising loss, after Rutgers was in good form, beating opponents like Maryland and Illinois.

The Scarlet Knights started well and led by 16 at half-time. But a second-half collapse led to them giving up 50 points, and the game ended 68-80. So they will be aiming to bounce back in this game.

Purdue’s current record is 7-3 and they are coming off a narrow victory against Maryland. They held off a second-half barrage and edged out the Terrapins by three points. The Boilermakers come in with a psychological advantage, knowing that they have already beaten Ohio State once, unlike Rutgers.

NCAA Men’s Basketball: Can the Scarlet Knights avoid another upset?

The Scarlet Knights lineup will consist of Jacob Young, Ron Harper Jr, and Montez Mathis as the guards, and Paul Mulcahy and Myles Johnson as the forwards. They will miss Cliff Omoruyi for a successive game after he suffered a sprained knee against Illinois.

Harper has been in good form so far and will be a handful for the Purdue defense. He is currently averaging 23.4 points and 7.1 rebounds while shooting a ridiculous 50% from three. Rutgers will need a big contribution from him to overcome Purdue.

The Boilermakers will start with Mason Gillis and Trevion Williams as their forwards, and Brandon Newman, Eric Hunter Jr, and Sasha Stefanovic as their guards. Williams has been their star so far, leading them in both points and rebounds. His inside scoring is lethal, and the Scarlet Knights will have to be strong in the paint against him.

This will be a close encounter, but the Scarlet Knights should be able to pull through with a win. Johnson against Williams is a terrible mismatch for them, but Harper should be able to guide his team to their 7th win of the season.