Michigan State vs Ohio State Prediction College Basketball Picks 1/3/25

The Michigan State Spartans and the Ohio State Buckeyes meet Friday in college basketball action from the Value City Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Michigan State vs. Ohio State prediction.

Michigan State Recap

The Michigan State Spartans will be out to build on their 80-62 win over Western Michigan last time out to improve to 11-2 on the year. After this game, Michigan State will head back home for a date with the Washington Huskies.

Spartans Win 6th In A Row

Jaden Akins leads the Spartans in scoring with 13.7 PPG along with 4.2 RPG while Jase Richardson has 10 PPG to round out the pair of double-digit scorers for Michigan State up to this point in the year. Frankie Fidler has 9.2 PPG and 3.2 RPG and Jaxon Kohler has 8.1 PPG with 8.4 RPG to lead the Spartans on the glass while Jeremy Fears Jr. has dished out a team-high 5.9 APG as well on the year. As a team, Michigan State is averaging 82 PPG on 47.6% shooting from the field, 28.8% from three, and 81.3% from the foul line this season.

Why the Michigan State Spartans will win

• Michigan State has won each of its last seven night games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Ohio State has lost 11 of its last 13 night games against the Big Ten Conference.

Ohio State Recap

The Ohio State Buckeyes come into this game looking to add to a 103-63 win over Indiana State last time out. After this game, Ohio State will take on Minnesota, Oregon, and Wisconsin.

Buckeyes Win Third Straight

Bruce Thornton leads the Buckeyes in scoring with 17.4 PPG and in assists with 4.8 APG while John Mobley Jr. has 12.2 PPG. Micah Parrish has 10 PPG with 4.7 RPG while Devin Royal has 14.8 PPG with a team-high 7.5 RPG to lead Ohio State on the glass and to finish off the group of double-digit scorers for Ohio State up to this point in the year. As a team, Ohio State is averaging 82.8 PPG on 50.5% shooting from the field, 39.6% from three, and 69.7% from the foul line this season.

Why the Ohio State Buckeyes will win

• Ohio State has won eight of its last nine night games at Value City Arena at Schottenstein Center.

Total Points Facts

• Nine of Ohio State’s last 10 games against AP-ranked opponents at Value City Arena at Schottenstein Center have produced a total of 142 or fewer points.
• Five of Michigan State’s last six games against Conference opponents have produced a total of 144 or fewer points.

Michigan State vs. Ohio State Prediction

I’m with Michigan State here. I get why Ohio State’s worth looking at because they’re at home and in the Big Ten, it seems like home court is paramount over a lot of things and it’s been like that for some time now. However, if we say that home court is worth about 3 points as that’s usually the average, that means that on a neutral floor, Michigan State’s the better team, and I honestly agree with that. The Spartans have had no issues going away from East Lansing and taking down some of the tougher teams in the country, and I just haven’t been able to buy into this Ohio State team if I’m being 100% honest. I think that the Spartans can go on the road here and snag the win so give me Michigan State in this one.