The Monmouth Hawks and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights meet Friday in college basketball action from the Jersey Mike’s Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Rutgers vs Monmouth Prediction.

Monmouth Recap

The Monmouth Hawks come into this one looking to snag their first win of the year after a 79-66 loss at the hands of Northern Illinois last time out. After this game, Monmouth will head on the road again for a matchup with Wichita State.

Hawks Looking For First W

Abdi Bashir Jr. has a team-high 18.3 PPG while Madison Durr has 14.3 PPG with 4 RPG and a team-high 3.7 APG to lead the Hawks in assists as the only other double-digit scorer for Monmouth so far this season. Justin Ray also has 9.3 PPG while Cornelius Robinson Jr. has chipped in a team-high 9 RPG as well on the year. As a team, Monmouth is averaging 65.7 PPG on 31% shooting from the field, 29.4% from three and 80.3% from the foul line so far this season.

Why the Monmouth Hawks will win

• Rutgers has lost the first half in five of its last six games against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Rutgers Recap

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights come into this one looking to build on back-to-back wins to start the year after a 75-65 win over Saint Peter’s last time out. After this game, Rutgers is going to welcome Merrimack to town.

Scarlet Knights Looking To Stay Unbeaten

Dylan Harper leads the Scarlet Knights in scoring with 22 PPG along with 4.5 RPG while Lathan Sommerville has 12.5 PPG with a team-high 6 RPG to lead the Scarlet Knights on the glass. Jordan Derkack has 8.5 PPG with 5.5 RPG and PJ Hayes IV has 8.5 PPG with 5 RPG as well on the year. Jamichael Davis also has a team-high 3.5 APG to lead Rutgers in assists as well. As a team, Rutgers is averaging 75 PPG on 49.5% shooting from the field, 25.6% from three and 65.2% from the foul line this season.

Why the Rutgers Scarlet Knights will win

• Monmouth has lost each of its last 10 games against AP-ranked opponents.
• Rutgers has won 21 of its last 22 games at Jersey Mike’s Arena when playing with a rest advantage.

Rutgers vs Monmouth Prediction

I’m on Rutgers here. Monmouth just hasn’t looked good at all this season and they’re not a team I’m high on going forward. I’m not always enthusiastic to lay big numbers with Rutgers, but the Scarlet Knights are the better team by a mile here that plays outstanding defense regardless of who is on the other side. I’ll side with Rutgers in this one.