Given the events of the previous weekend, picking which team will end the regular season at #1 in college basketball is going to be no easy feat. The Duke Blue Devils conceded their top spot to the Tennessee Volunteers, but you get the definite sense that we have not seen the last change at the top seed by a long stretch.
There are several teams all knocking on the door, with one of those teams being the Michigan Wolverines, who are down in the #5 spot. They may well have been in contention for that #1 seed had it not been for a loss over the weekend, so they will be looking to bounce back with a win on Tuesday night at home. Their visitors will be the Minnesota Golden Gophers, a team that was rolling along quite nicely until Big Ten Conference play came around. The Wolverines need to shake off their first loss of the season and get back to winning ways against Minnesota Golden. Michigan is in as a 12.5-point favorite for this one, with the point total set at 137 ½.
Minnesota at Michigan NCAA Basketball Spread & Game Info
Coach Pitino met with the media before we headed on the road yesterday. Click play below to hear his thoughts on Michigan, #B1G play and more. pic.twitter.com/8G0eZ0fPAW
— Minnesota Men’s Basketball (@GopherMBB) 22 de enero de 2019
- When: Tuesday, January 22 at 7 PM EST
- Where: Crisler Center, Ann Arbor
- TV: BTN
- Radio: TuneIn
- Live Stream: BTN2Go
- NCAA Basketball Spread: Michigan Wolverines -12.5 (Total 137.5)
Duke vs Pittsburgh NCAA Basketball Odds & Expert Pick
Why bet on the Minnesota Golden Gophers?
If you take conference play out of the equation, the Golden Gophers would be sitting with a 10-1 record, but we all know that it’s the conference games that separate the contenders from the pretenders. Minnesota does have a winning record in Big Ten games at 4-3, but they are well off the pace being set at the top by the two teams from Michigan.
The bad news is that they need to now go on the road to face a Wolverines team that is sure to still be smarting after taking their first loss of the season. Minnesota has failed to cover in each of their last 2 games and is just 1-3 ATS in road games this season. On a positive note, they have a winning record against ranked teams, going 2-1 SU.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 74.33
- Field Goal Percentage: 44.03
- Three-Point Percentage: 31.51
- Free Throw Percentage: 67.22
- Total Rebounds: 38.39
Defense
- Total Score: 69.56
- Field Goal Percentage: 43.61
- Three-Point Percentage: 35.82
- Free Throw Percentage: 69.21
- Total Rebounds: 33.94
Why bet on the Michigan Wolverines?
The Wolverines could have potentially been looking at that #1 spot were it not for the loss to the unranked Wisconsin Badgers over the weekend. That defeat has them sitting behind Michigan State in the race for the Big Ten regular-season crown, so there are several reasons why they will be looking to shake off that win and get back to winning ways.
This should be a golden opportunity for them to do just that given that they have won 9 of their last 10 meetings with Minnesota. While the Wolverines have not lost at home this season, they have not been entirely convincing against the spread, going just 5-7. Furthermore, Minnesota has covered in 5 of their last 7 visits to Michigan.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 72.56
- Field Goal Percentage: 46.72
- Three-Point Percentage: 36.27
- Free Throw Percentage: 66.67
- Total Rebounds: 36.06
Defense
- Total Score: 57.06
- Field Goal Percentage: 39.98
- Three-Point Percentage: 30.56
- Free Throw Percentage: 65.24
- Total Rebounds: 32.11
Minnesota at Michigan NCAA Basketball Betting Trends
- Minnesota is 2-6 ATS in the last 8 games on the road
- Minnesota is 2-9 SU in the last 11 games on the road
- The total went UNDER in 6 of Minnesota’s last 8 games on the road
- Michigan is 6-3 ATS in the last 9 games when playing Minnesota
- Michigan is 11-1 SU in the last 12 games when playing Minnesota
- The total went OVER in 5 of Michigan’s last 5 games when playing Minnesota
Expert Pick & Final Score Prediction for Minnesota at Michigan
I don’t think that there’s any doubt that Michigan can get back to winning ways here, but I am not entirely convinced that they can overcome that 13-point spread in the process. I am taking Michigan to win, but I am also looking at the Golden Gophers to cover.
Score: Michigan Wolverines 74 – Minnesota Golden Gophers 63
