TUESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 – #4 Purdue Boilermakers (13-0) v Minnesota Golden Gophers (11-3)
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Minnesota: 11-3 SU, 8-5 ATS
Purdue: 13-0 SU, 6-6-1 ATS
The No. 4 Purdue Boilermakers hit the road to take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers at the Mackey Arena in West Lafayette.
Purdue has beaten Minnesota 31 of their 50 meetings including a 70-62 on Jan 22, 2009.
The Boilermakers handed the No. 6 Mountaineers their first loss of the season in their last outing, beating them 77-62. Junior JaJuan Johnson had 25 points and 10 rebounds, followed by Robbie Hummel with 18 and E’Twaun Moore with 15 in the win. The Purdue defense was solid and held the West Virginia’s star guard combination of Da’Sean Butler and Devin Ebanks to just 28 combined points.
However, as good as Purdue has played, they have struggled from 3-point range and are just 31.1 percent from beyond the arc — and rank 10th among the 11 Big Ten teams in that category.
The Boilermakers are 13-0 because they have been excellent from just about everywhere on the floor. They have forced 245 turnovers while giving up just 145, have out rebounded their opponents by 3 or more a game, and are the Big Ten’s best free throw shooters at almost 75 percent. 
The Minnesota Golden Gophers will have their work cut out as they face a very good Purdue squad, but should be carrying some decent momentum coming off a huge 86-74 win over Iowa on Saturday. The victory increased their current winning streak to seven straight. Junior guard Blake Hoffarber scored 24 points, while Damian Johnson added 13 points and four blocks for the Gophers in the their first real road win of the season. The Gophers enter the Purdue game ranked sixth in the country in assists, seventh in turnover margin, and tenth in scoring margin with an average margin of victory during their seven game streak of 25.3 points.
A big reason for Minnesota’s success is its incredible depth, but it will be tested as the they will most likely be without center Ralph Sampson and 6-foot-8 forward Robbie Hummel, both who are listed as day-to-day.
The Gophers have the momentum but will need to stay focused for an entire 40 minutes. Something they have failed to do against some inferior road opponents this season.
Purdue vs. Minnesota Odds
The odds makers have the Boilermakers at –8 1/2-point favorites in this one.
A Few Trends:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota’s last 5 games when playing on the road against Purdue
Minnesota’ is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Minnesota’s last 9 games when playing Purdue
Minnesota’ is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Purdue’s last 5 games when playing at home against Minnesota
Purdue’ is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Purdue’ is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Purdue’s last 9 games when playing Minnesota
Free Boilermakers vs Golden Gophers CBB Pick
I expect a red-hot Golden Gophers team to hand the Boilermakers their first loss of the season in this one.
Next up: Minnesota home to Ohio State, Saturday, January 9
Purdue at Wisconsin, Saturday, January 9
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Matt Martz is a freelance writer located in Central California. Blessed is the gambler who expects nothing, for ye shall not be disappointed.
One reply on “Golden Gophers vs. Boilermakers Preview | Pick”
This should be a fairly good game but Purdue is the class of the Big 10 and off to a fanstastic start. They are a much more complete team than Minnesota and it will show in this game.