Big Ten foes will collide when the Nebraska Cornhuskers (12-8) face off against the Michigan Wolverines (14-5) at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Action begins at 2:00 pm ET on Saturday, Jan. 23 and can be seen on ES2 and ES3.
The Cornhuskers enter this game hoping for similar success after barely hanging on to beat Michigan State 72-71 on Wednesday. Shavon Shields was the game’s leading scorer with 28 points on 12-for-20 shooting. The Wolverines, meanwhile, are coming off a 74-69 win against Minnesota on Wednesday. Derrick Walton Jr. led the team in scoring by accounting for 22 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
The odds for Nebraska and Michigan are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at 143 points. The Cornhuskers come into this game 12-8 Straight Up (SU) and 10-5 Against The Spread (ATS).
Over on the other bench, the Wolverines have 14-5 SU and 10-7 ATS records. The Wolverines convert their shots at a high percentage, ranking 17th in the country at .489. The Wolverines are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking seventh in Division I at 1.64. Shifting to the other side of the court, the Wolverines allow just 64.2 points per game, ranking them 31st in the nation.
These conference foes will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their most recent meeting a season ago, Michigan came out on top, bumping its SU record over their most recent meetings to 5-0. With a 3-2 record, the Wolverines also have the advantage ATS. Michigan held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers twice in the last five matchups. On the other side of the court, Nebraska never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – Neb, ATS Winner – Neb, O/U – Over
Notes
Nebraska is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Nebraska’s last 5 games.
Nebraska is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Michigan.
Nebraska averages 74.5 points per game, placing the team just 163rd in the nation. Michigan ranks 31st in points allowed, giving up 64.2 points per game.
Nebraska scores just 74.7 points per home game (ranked 224th). Michigan ranks 99th in points allowed on the road, giving up 71.4 points.
The Nebraska Cornhuskers rank 97th for their offensive rating of 109.5. The Michigan Wolverines have a defensive rating of 98.3 (ranked 95th).
The Nebraska Cornhuskers average 68.0 possessions per game and 1.095 points per possession, while the Michigan Wolverines earn fewer possessions (65.6) but more points per possession (1.182).
The Michigan Wolverines have one of the best effective field goal percentages this season, ranking fourth in the country with an eFG% of 58.4%. When their opponents record a similar or higher eFG%, the Nebraska Cornhuskers are winless with a 0-2 record.
On average, Nebraska attempts 18.0 three pointers and Michigan attempts 26.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the Nebraska Cornhuskers have a 2-6 record while the Michigan Wolverines have a winning 12-5 record.
The Michigan Wolverines rank seventh with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.64, while the Nebraska Cornhuskers rank outside the top 100 at 234th with an A/TO of .97.
On average, Nebraska forces a turnover rate of 19.0%. When Michigan turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 3-1 record.
