Penn State Nittany Lions vs Northwestern Wildcats Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 03/10/26

Stop busting brackets and sign up for the Pickswise March Madness Premium Picks now! Our expert is up +30.7 units over the last 3 NCAA Tournaments and picked Florida at +4000 last year. Get futures picks and daily best bets throughout the entire tournament, all for just $50. Click here to join and get 20% off before Selection Sunday!

The #18 seed Penn State Nittany Lions are set to take on the #15 seed Northwestern Wildcats in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament on Tuesday. The Wildcats have been playing some of their best basketball towards the end of the regular eason despite losing the last 2 games. They took then top-15 Purdue down to the wire before falling 70-66 and lost in the final seconds against a tough Minnesota defense. Today, the Wildcats will look to rebound in their matchup against a Penn State team that has the worst defense in the Big Ten, allowing 79.5 points per game. 

The last time these teams met, Northwestern cruised to a 94-73 victory, shooting an impressive 60.3% from the floor and outrebounding the Nittany Lions 34-21. Offensively, these teams are fairly even on the year, with the Wildcats averaging 73.2 points per game compared to Penn State 73.9. One key player in Northwestern’s offense is Nick Martinelli, who averages 22.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. Martinelli is a physical player who can beat you inside, making 50.1% of his shots this season, and if you foul him, he’s making 80.9% of his shots from the free throw line.

The last time Martinelli played Penn State, he dropped 34 points and will look to be a key player in his team’s success this afternoon. The Nittany Lions simply have too many issues to trust in this matchup. They’ve lost 5 of their last 6 games, and their defense isn’t good enough to slow down Martinelli and the rest of this Wildcats offense. Look for Northwestern to get the job done in the first round and move on to play Washington. 

Penn State vs Northwestern prediction: Northwestern Wildcats -6 (-120) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

If you’re looking for a new sportsbook, we recommend checking out Fanatics Sportsbook. New users can get $100 FanCash bet matches on their first 10 wagers! Join Fanatics Sportsbook, where you can bet on our Penn State vs Northwestern predictions.