Rutgers vs Maryland Odds, Pick & Prediction

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights boast one of the best defenses in the country and one of the weakest offenses. They're truly an anomaly, which has led to subpar results and a matchup on the first day of the Big Ten Tournament against the Maryland Terrapins.

Maryland is another program that has underachieved. The Terps have the talent to battle with the top of the conference and even beat Illinois, Nebraska and Iowa (twice). However, they dropped enough games to end the season to keep them out of the running.

However, pace and defense should loom large in this affair, which could lead to fewer points at the culmination of this game.

The Scarlet Knights run at a quicker pace on offense than defense (16.6 seconds per possession vs. 18.3 seconds per possession). That said, this shouldn't be much of a factor in this game considering how poorly Rutgers shoots.

The Scarlet Knights own a 28.9% 3-point percentage and 43.9% 2-point percentage, leading to the 357th-ranked effective-field goal percentage in the country. Adding a cherry on top of that garbage sandwich is a 66% free-throw percentage.

They rank lower than 315th in both Rim-and-3 Rate and Open-3 Rate, per ShotQuality.

This team seemingly does nothing right on offense, which could hinder its ability to compete with the big dogs, as it did for much of the Big Ten season.

Rutgers does rebound fairly well on offense when compared to the rest of these putrid numbers. Clifford Omoruyi’s presence on the glass could make an impact, as he's hauling in nearly nine boards per game.

Additionally, the Knights may shoot poorly at the line, but they can draw fouls. Maryland also has a tendency to foul opponents, so this could get ugly.

On the injury front, Mawot Mag is questionable yet again, so keep an eye on his status for the Knights.

On the other end of the court, Julian Reese is also questionable for Maryland. He's undoubtedly a go-to option for the Terps down low, as head coach Kevin Willard loves defaulting to the post-up.

He does so for a reason. The Terps are shooting just 28.4% from deep and only 49.2% from inside the perimeter.

Reese is pretty efficient and unquestionably reliable in terms of getting to the free-throw line, owning the 11th-best free-throw attempt rate in the country.

Penn State crushed the Terps on the block without Reese, so points could be few and far between if he doesn't play.

Still, Jahmir Young is the best offensive threat for the Terps and earned second-team All-Big Ten honors this season. However, he still shoots below 33% from downtown.

Even though Rutgers may allow a decent number of 3-point attempts, the Scarlet Knights rank 14th in Defensive Open-3 Rate. They collapse on a shooter well, and Maryland doesn't have the 3-point options to contend with this Rutgers defense.

Maryland can also get to the line, but a good portion of that comes from Reese. If he's hobbled or unavailable, it will hinder whatever semblance of offensive production this team has left.

These are two of the best defenses in the conference, and both Rutgers and Maryland prefer to slow the ball down defensively.

With that being the case, the Big Ten Tournament could open with a low-scoring slugfest. If Mag and Reese are out, that will limit how much offensive action fans will see in this game.

Take the under to 123.

Pick: Under 126 (Play to 123)