Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue Predictions, Odds & Picks: Will Boilermakers’ Size Decide March Madness Tilt?
Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue Predictions, Odds & Picks: Will Boilermakers’ Size Decide March Madness Tilt?iv class=”bodyContent col-lg-9 mb-3″>

Purdue Boilermakers head coach Matt Painter looks for his first Final Four appearance, and that run starts with a game against the East region's No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson. Read on for our Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue prediction based on the top NCAAB odds.

Fairleigh Dickinson (20-15, 10-6 NEC) is coming off its second NCAA Tournament win in school history. The Knights' 84-61 victory over Texas Southern allowed them to join the Tigers as the only schools with multiple First Four wins. In addition, Knights head coach Tobin Anderson is one of eight head coaches in the NCAA Tournament in his first season with his school.

Purdue (29-5, 15-5 Big Ten) earned a No. 1 seed for the first time since 1996. The Boilermakers won their first regular season Big Ten title since 2017 and its first Big Ten Tournament championship since 2009. In addition, Purdue beca me the third team since 2015 to sweep the Big Ten's regular season and conference tournament titles.

Here is our best Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue prediction (odds via FanDuel Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue odds

Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue prediction

This is a fascinating matchup, as Fairleigh Dickinson is the shortest team in Division I based on average height (76 inches) and is going against the gargantuan 7-foot-4 Wooden Award favorite Zach Edey. While the Knights have made up for their lack of stature with toughness and physicality, there is no way to prep for the problems Edey poses, as no one from the Northeast Conference was that big or skilled. In addition, Fairleigh Dickinson ranks 359th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom, which largely results from that lack of heigh t. As a result, we expect a Purdue team that ranks third nationally with a 38.3% offensive rebounding percentage to dominate the backboards.

Check out our March Madness best bets for Friday! Our Mike Spector went 3-1 on Thursday's games.

FDU can pose issues for Purdue, as it presses at the country's highest rate (54%). However, while much has been made about the Boilermakers' inexperienced backcourt starting two freshmen, those freshmen also were an integral part of regular season and conference tournament championships in one of the deepest leagues in the country.

This is a three-star play, as Purdue is the top-ranked team in the country in free throw rate allowed, so it will not give FDU many easy points at the foul line. The Knights also allow opposing teams to shoot 56.1% from 2-point range (ranks 353rd), coming from one of D-I's lowest-rated co nferences, so the Boilermakers are in line for one of their best offensive days of the season.

Check out our best March Madness odds and Wooden Award odds.

Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue best odds

DraftKings FanDuel BetMGM Caesars PointsBet
-23 -22.5 N/A -23 N/A
-110 -120 N/A -110 N/A

Not every sportsbook has a line posted, given that FDU's First Four game ended late Wednesday night. However, all those that do have already come down from an opening number of -24. We are less comfortable playing this line at -23 or higher, as No. 16 seeds are a respectable 34-33-1 against the spread against No. 1 seeds since 2005.

Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue odds analysis

Purdue is most commonly found at -23 as of Friday morning, with FanDuel as the only sportsbook offering a line of -22.5 (-120).  With such a large spread, it's not overly surprising to see 61% of the ATS action backing FDU.

The consensus opening Over/Under of 145 has held firm at several sportsbooks, while FanDuel and BetRivers have moved to 145.5. Bettors have shown a slight preference for the Under with 53% of the activity.

Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Purdue game info

  • Date: Friday, March 17, 6:50 p.m. ET
  • TV: TNT
  • Location: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, OH

Fairleigh Dickinson-Purdue pick made 3/16/2023 at 6:43 a.m. ET.

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