Wolverines vs Wildcats CBB Basketball Spread/Handicapping
The Wolverines are done touring the MAC and the directional in-state schools. It is time to get to the business of proving they are worth their lofty ranking against the best conference in America.
#2 Michigan Wolverines (13-0) vs Northwestern Wildcats (9-4)
Thursday January 3
Welsh-Ryan Arena – Evanston, IL
7:00PM
Moneyline: No ML currently listed at TopBet
Spread: Michigan -10.5
O/U: 129.5
ATS Matchup Stats | Gambling Insight!
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Michigan
They get a slightly easy test by starting things off against Northwestern even though the game is on the road. This is just their second road game of the season and it should acclimate them to the intensity they can expect to experience as long as they are undefeated.
Michigan point guard Trey Burke might be Player of the Year but even if he is not the Wolverines still have the best backcourt in America. Burke leads in scoring and assists and gets help from athletic shot maker Tim Hardaway Jr. and sublime shooter freshman Nick Stauskas – who is nailing a staggering 56% of his three point attempts.
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I haven’t even gotten to fellow freshmen Glenn Robinson III and Mitch McGary, the team’s top rebounders. This team is good and deep.
Big Blue has also been a solid bet at 7-4 ATS and I think they are pretty good value in this one. Their average winning margin has been just under 22ppg and I love that they shoot fouls at such a good clip – 72%. This is a super efficient team and though there are definitely challenges ahead I don’t think this will be one of them. [ad-6571516]
Northwestern
The Big Ten is super tough this year and Northwestern is missing their biggest gun, guard Drew Crawford, who is out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. To date they have weathered his absence pretty well but anytime this season they have faced a reasonable challenge they have lost. Beating Brown will be a lot harder than beating Big Blue even at home as they try and break through that bubble to the big dance.
Even before Crawford got hurt the Wildcats were leaning more on guard Reggie Hearn, a senior who has nearly doubled his scoring average from last season. The problem is Hearn is hurt too and is expected to miss the Michigan game. Their third leading scorer is another guard Dave Sobolewski but he is the spot up shooter type and might find it tough to get open without any other scoring threats on the floor.
Northwestern is averaging 67ppg coming into this one but I just don’t see where the points are going to come from. With the cupboard a little bare this could be a low point for the Wildcats but look for them next week when they visit a Penn State team that will be at the bottom of the Big Ten standings. Could be good value after they lose to Michigan and likely Minnesota later in the week.
Spread Pick: Michigan -10.5
O/U Pick: Over
Score Prediction: Michigan 81 – Northwestern 60
