Ohio State vs. Wisconsin Big Ten Odds, Picks, Predictions: Can Badgers Strengthen At-Large Resume?

The first-round matchup between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Wisconsin Badgers at the Big Ten tournament has significant NCAA tournament implications. Read on for our Ohio State vs. Wisconsin college basketball picks based on the top NCAAB odds.

Ohio State and Wisconsin are typically fixtures atop the Big Ten standings but have been relegated to two of four teams playing on the conference tournament's first day as the No. 12 and No. 13 seeds after subpar seasons. 

Ohio State has shown signs of life, winning two of its final three games after losing 14 of 15 Big Ten games at one point this season. Meanwhile, Wisconsin is still on the NCAA tournament bubble despite finishing the regular season with a 9-11 league record, thanks to the depth and strength of the conference. The Badgers enter the Big Ten tournament with a 78 NET ranking and 11 combined Quad 1 and 2 wins (6-7 record in Quad 1).

Here is our best Ohio State vs. Wisconsin college basketball pick (odds via FanDuel Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Ohio State vs. Wisconsin odds

Ohio State vs. Wisconsin prediction

Wisconsin should play like a desperate team in this first-round matchup, as the Badgers entered the week as one of ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi's “First Four Out” of the NCAA tournament field. Though Wisconsin has not won consecutive games since a six-game winning streak from Dec. 3 to Jan. 3, the team has won more on the road than the average Big Ten teams of late (3-2 straight up in the last five road games), which should serve Wisconsin well in a tournament setting.

One of those road wins was a five-point victory at Ohio State, despite getting out-rebounded by 19 and shooting 59 % (13-of-22) from the free-throw line. We would not expect the Buckeyes to have as significant a rebounding edge in this rematch as they ranked 10th in the conference in rebounding differential (+3.7). In addition, Ohio State has been without bruising forward Zed Key for the final five games (he is out for the season with a shoulder injury), and he was the team's leading rebounder (7.5 rebounds per game) throughout the season. Wisconsin struggled with his size in the first meeting, as Key had 12 points and nine rebounds (four offensive rebounds), and his replacement, Felix Okpara (3.8 points, 3.4 rebounds per game), is not nearly as polished. 

The Badgers have been excellent defensively, holding opponents to 58.9 points per game in its last six non-overtime games. Wisconsin is 10-6 SU in games decided by five or fewer points this season, and we expect its experience in tight games to pay huge dividends in this matchup.

Check out our best March Madness odds and Wooden Award odds.

Ohio State vs. Wisconsin best odds

This is one of the rare point spreads with different numbers or levels of juice attached to those numbers at nearly every sportsbook, suggesting that these lines and prices could fluctuate throughout the day. As a result, Wisconsin backers have some difficult choices to make, whether or not to pay up in price for the full +2.5 points at FanDuel, or take plus-money odds at +2 at DraftKings. However, given how tightly contested many of these early-round conference tournaments have been, we will opt for all the points we can get.

Ohio State vs. Wisconsin odds analysis

Ohio State opened as consensus 1.5-point favorites overnight, but any line movement that has occurred since has moved in the direction of the Buckeyes, who are as high as -2.5 at FanDuel. Sixty-six percent of all point-spread bets have backed the underdogs.

The O /U opened at 131.5 and has either remained there or lowered to 131 at several sportsbooks. The Over has gotten the majority of the bets, attracting 64% of all wagers.

Ohio State vs. Wisconsin game info

• Date: Wednesday, March 8, 6:30 p.m. ET
• TV: BTN
• Location: United Center, Chicago, IL

Ohio State-Wisconsin pick made 3/8/2023 at 6:23 a.m. ET.

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