Heading into the 2023 Big Ten Tournament, the No. 5 Purdue Boilermakers possess the best odds to win the Big Ten Championship. With two games remaining of the regular season, the conference favorite is 13-5 against Big Ten opponents and 24-5 overall.
The Boilermakers still have to play at Wisconsin on Thursday night and at home versus Illinois on Saturday, March 5. Last season, Purdue finished 29-8, 14-6 in the Big Ten and lost to Iowa in the championship game. Check out the BetOnline odds below for this year’s Big Ten Tournament.
2023 Big Ten Tournament Odds — Purdue tops conference list
Under head coach Matt Painter, the Boilermakers have overachieved. They were named Big Ten regular season champs for the 25th time in school history. Now, Purdue is aiming to win its first Big Ten Tournament title since 2009. Sportsbooks are expecting another championship win.
Junior center Zach Edey leads Purdue in points (22.3), rebounds (12.9), and blocks (2.4) per game. Through 28 starts this season, the 7-foot-4 standout is also shooting 61.2% from the floor and a career-best 74.2% at the foul line. Freshman guard Braden Smith is the Boilermakers’ assists (4.3) and steals (1.2) leader as well.
Purdue ranks 138th in the NCAA in points per game (73.4). However, the Boilermakers are tied for fourth with Michigan in the Big Ten. BetOnline oddsmakers are giving Indiana (+300), Rutgers (+450), and Maryland (+500) the next-best odds to win the conference tournament.
Big Ten Championship is Sunday, March 12 at 2:30 p.m. ET
In No. 5 Purdue’s 79-71 loss to No. 17 Indiana, Edey amassed 26 points and 16 boards. It was their third defeat over the course of four games. Indiana’s Jalen Hood-Schifino scored 35 points on the road at Mackey Arena en route to sweeping the Boilermakers.
“Very few people have rolled through here and done that and to do that at 19?” Purdue coach Matt Painter said of Hood-Schifino. “Getting swept by them is not something on our résumé, but it is.”
Based on the previous two meetings, some bettors are expecting Indiana to upset Purdue during the Big Ten Tournament. That potential scenario is in the cards. The first round begins Wednesday, March 8. On Opening Day, No. 13 Ohio State is scheduled to play the No. 12 seed at 5:30 p.m. ET.
