The Indiana Hoosiers take on the Northwestern Wildcats in Evanston, IL. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.
Northwestern is favored by 5.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -245. The total is set at 141 points.
Here’s my Indiana vs. Northwestern predictions and college basketball picks for January 22, 2025.
Indiana vs Northwestern Prediction
My Pick: Northwestern -5 (Play to -5.5)
My Indiana vs Northwestern best bet is on the Wildcats spread, with the best odds currently available at Caesars. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Indiana vs Northwestern Odds
| Indiana Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+5.5 -110 | 141 -110o / -110u | +200 |
| Northwestern Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-5.5 -110 | 141 -110o / -110u | -245 |
- Indiana vs Northwestern spread: Northwestern -5.5
- Indiana vs Northwestern over/under: 141 points
- Indiana vs Northwestern moneyline: Northwestern -245, Indiana +200
- Indiana vs Northwestern best bet: Northwestern -5 (Play to -5.5)
Spread
I'm taking the Wildcats on the spread up to -5.5
Moneyline
There's no value on the moneyline.
Over/Under
I have no play on the total.
My Pick: Northwestern -5 (Play to -5.5)
Indiana vs Northwestern College Basketball Betting Preview
Big Ten home teams are money makers, but that’s not the only reason I’m targeting Northwestern to cover against Indiana.
The Wildcats have two elite scorers — Nick Martinelli and Brooks Barnhizer — who combine for 38.4 points per game and make their living in the mid-range.
This is good news against Indiana because the Hoosiers focus on defending the 3-point line, where they allow opponents to make just 31% of their shots from deep. Northwestern shoots just 32% from downtown and will happily oblige by funneling its top scorers into their favorite part of the floor: the mid-range.
Second, Indiana is outstanding at finishing around the rim off of offensive rebounds (10th in potential points scored off the offensive glass, via Haslametrics), but Northwestern does a solid job of limiting its opponents from converting those second chances (27th in NCAA).
Most importantly, despite victories over Ohio State and Penn State, the Hoosiers are 344th in the country in Haslametrics’ away-from-home metric, which is likely putting heavy stock into a 25-point loss to Iowa and a 17-point defeat at Nebraska.
At 2-5 in the Big Ten, Northwestern is desperate to hold serve at home before the schedule tightens up with games against No. 17 Illinois on the road and No. 18 Wisconsin. That’s another reason I’m counting on a big game from Chris Collins’ group on Wednesday.
