Big Ten basketball continues their league play with a matchup between the Michigan Wolverines (7-11, 2-5 Big Ten) and the #2 Purdue Boilermakers (17-2, 6-2 Big Ten). Michigan just dropped a home game to Illinois 88-73, failing to cover as 2.5-point home underdogs. Purdue won a game on the road in Iowa, winning 84-70 and covering as 6.5-point road favorites. Purdue won the only matchup between these teams last season by five on the road. Purdue is currently listed as 17.5-point favorites. Tipoff is scheduled for 9:00 EST from Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, and can be found on Peacock.
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The Michigan Wolverines find themselves in an unfamiliar spot as the are currently in the bottom of the Big Ten standings with a 2-5 league record. Rutgers is tied with Michigan at 2-5, while every other team in the conference has three wins or more. Michigan has lost six of their last seven games, with their only win coming over Ohio State at home. In their last game, Michigan was led by forward Tarris Reed Jr with 20 points in the loss to Illinois.
The bench loved that one. ?? @umichbball pic.twitter.com/sRaXrwqUrc
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) January 19, 2024
Dug McDaniel is the team's leading scorer, but he will miss this game as he is serving a suspension on road games. This leaves Olivier Nkamhoua to be their top scorer, he is a physical 6'8 forward averaging 17.0 PPG and 7.3 RPG on the season. He has scored 16 or more in his past three games, including a 20 point game in the win over Ohio State. Terrance Williams II is the top shooter on the team, he has 40 threes on the season as a 6'7 senior forward while shooting 43.0% from deep. Williams averages 12.6 PPG and 4.2 RPG. Nimari Burnett will become the top scorer in the backcourt, he is averaging 9.6 PPG as a 6'4 guard, and will need to up his scoring with McDaniel out of the lineup.
Michigan is currently ranked 79th overall according to KenPom. They rank 45th in offensive efficiency and 139th in defensive efficiency. The Wolverines do not play fast on offense, they rank 212th in tempo based on their pace of play. The Big Ten currently are projected to get six teams in the NCAA Tournament in Bracketology, but Michigan is on the outside looking in.
Injury Report:
Questionable: F Tray Jackson (5.5 PPG)