Updated January 23, 2026
The Indiana Hoosiers will visit the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Friday in a key Big Ten basketball game between two teams that are desperate for a win. Both teams are below .500 in Big Ten play and need to go on a serious run if they are going to see the NCAA Tournament this year. Before this matchup begins, I've broken it down and you will find my Indiana vs Rutgers prediction right here.
Pick: | Rutgers +7.5 ATS PRO |
Confidence: | 3/5 |
Indiana (12-7, 3-5 Big Ten) has struggled recently, dropping its last four games to ranked opponents, including Michigan and Nebraska. The Hoosiers’ offense produces a robust 81.1 points per game, ranking well offensively, but their slide shows vulnerabilities on both ends of the floor that Rutgers can attempt to exploit.
Rutgers (9-10, 2-6 Big Ten) returns home after consecutive road losses, aiming to turn its form around in front of its fans. The Scarlet Knights are 8-3 at home this season, proving tougher to beat in Piscataway, and they will try to get back into the win column here.
Both of these teams come into this matchup under the .500 mark in Big Ten competition. Indiana looked like they could be an at-large team in the NCAA Tournament earlier in the season. But they can't afford to keep losing games and have any shot to make the tournament. Rutgers might be a lost cause on that front at this point, but an extended winning streak could help them to change that.
Past meetings: The series between these programs is even historically with a 9-9 split, and Indiana won the most recent matchup 84-74 in Bloomington on January 2, 2025. Indiana’s last win in Piscataway came on February 5, 2018, making this venue a tricky place for the Hoosiers to secure a result.
ATS and O/U records
Home/road splits
Score Projection: Indiana 77 – Rutgers 74 ATS PRO
Win Probability: Indiana 76%, Rutgers 24% ATS PRO
Indiana is a better basketball team than Rutgers overall. But Indiana is just 1-4 on the road this season and they have not proven that they can pass many road tests as currently constructed. While I do think that Indiana will win this game outright, I don't think the Hoosiers will cover the spread. I'll take the points with the Scarlet Knights on Friday night.
Jay Sanin is the GM and Head of Sports at ATS.io. He has been writing about sports gambling since 2013, handicapping tens of thousands of sporting events. He plays sides and totals aggressively across most sports and is more selective in player prop markets. He does his own modeling across most sports, and his family is jealous of how much time he spends on his precious spreadsheets.
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