The Michigan Wolverines and Northwestern Wildcats are playing Thursday at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Tip-off from Evanston, IL, is at 7:00 p.m. ET. The Wildcats are 4.5-point spread favorites and the game total is 139 points.
Michigan, 11-10 SU and 9-11-1 ATS, was defeated 83-61 by Penn State on Sunday. The Wolverines are 2-3 in their past five and 5-5 in Big Ten competition.
Northwestern, 15-6 SU and 12-9 ATS, was defeated 86-70 by Iowa on Tuesday. The Wildcats are 3-2 in their past five and 6-4 in conference play.
Michigan defeated Northwestern 85-78 in Ann Arbor on Jan. 15. The Wildcats led 39-37 at halftime, but the Wolverines rallied to score 48 second-half points. Michigan is 89-39 all-time versus Northwestern.
Michigan has dropped five of its last seven, dropping the Wolverines 4.5 games behind conference leader Purdue in the Big Ten standings. With just ten regular season games remaining, can UM make a push toward NCAA Tournament eligibility?
The Wolverines were outclassed by the Nittany Lions in their last outing, falling behind by as many as 32 points. The Michigan defense was unable to make an impact, giving up 83 points on 54.4 percent shooting. PSU shot 13-for-30 from three-point range and outrebounded U of M 36-27. The Wolverines shot 42.4 percent from the field and 27.3 percent from three.
? Steal
? Slam@kb33zy_04 x @umichbball pic.twitter.com/eHFRVadvta— Michigan On BTN (@MichiganOnBTN) January 29, 2023
Michigan scores 73.4 points per game (147th) on 44.6 percent shooting (186th), including 34.3 percent from behind the arc (182nd). It converts 68.4 percent of its free throws (276th) and averages 33.4 rebounds (109th) with a -0.3 rebounding margin. Michigan is 53rd nationally in schedule-adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom.
Junior center Hunter Dickinson paces the Wolverines, averaging 17.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. He shoots 55.5 percent from the field and 39.4 percent from three-point distance. Other players to watch include freshman guard Jett Howard (14.9 PPG, 39.9 3PT%), sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin (12.0 PPG and 3.6 RPG), and freshman guard Dug McDaniel (7.0 PPG and 3.5 APG).
Michigan gives up 70.4 points (210th) on 42.9 percent shooting (151st), including 32.3 percent from three-point range (122nd). The Wolverines are 86th in schedule-adjusted defensive efficiency, 130th in adjusted tempo, and 43rd i n assist-per-turnover ratio.
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