Michigan State vs Northwestern Odds
| Michigan St Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-2.5 -110 | 134 -112o / -108u | N/A |
| Northwestern Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+2.5 -110 | 134 -112o / -108u | N/A |
Here's everything you need to know about Michigan State vs. Northwestern on Sunday, Jan. 7 — our expert pick, prediction and college basketball betting guide for today.
We head out to Evanston, Illinois, in what should be a terrific Big Ten clash Sunday evening. The Northwestern Wildcats will look to get back in the win column with the Michigan State Spartans coming to town.
The Wildcats suffered a brutal loss to Illinois earlier this week, in which they were absolutely dominated from the opening tip. Meanwhile, Tom Izzo's Spartans are red hot as they look to extend their five-game winning streak.
Let's take a deeper dive into both of these teams to uncover the best betting angle for Michigan State vs. Northwestern.
Michigan State Spartans
I wasn't a big fan of this Spartans team last season, as they seemed to have ridiculous 3-point variance consistently go their way. However, this is a much better team led by guards Tyson Walker and A.J. Hoggard.
Izzo's squad enters this contest 32nd in adjusted offensive efficiency and an impressive seventh in defensive efficiency. The Spartans do an excellent job at protecting the basketball on the offensive end, but struggle mightily at the charity stripe — a 70% clip at the free-throw line will not get the job done in close games. Besides that, this is a very balanced offense.
For this game in particular, Michigan State will need to continue to be dominant on the defensive end. This is a Northwestern team that can very quickly get hot from deep, but the Spartans are 28th in defensive 3PT%.
This isn't the greatest spot for the Spartans. They've played their last five games at home and now will enter a hostile environment against a team that just got embarrassed in its last game.
Analytically, the Spartans are good enough on both ends of the floor to steal this win from the Wildcats. I think they will take control of the boards, but their recent strength of schedule is another added factor as to why I can't back them in this game.
When betting college basketball, register with Action Network's DraftKings promo code today for a sign-up offer.
Northwestern Wildcats
This isn't the best matchup on paper for the Wildcats, and there are a few key contributing factors to that.
First and foremost, they have not been a good rebounding team. Secondly, the Spartans are a very deep team with a ton of experience, whereas the Wildcats have an experienced starting five but an extremely thin bench. Northwestern is a better 3-point shooting team, so this could be a spot for them to exploit. The Wildcats are also 349th in pace, but the Spartans also play relatively slow.
There's no doubting the talent of star point guard Boo Buie, but he has not been at his best this season. The metrics say the Spartans should take care of business in this game, but something is holding me back from fully believing in them.
I think a big difference-maker will not only be the Wildcats hitting their shots from deep, but they also protect the basketball even better than the Spartans.
If Northwestern can capitalize on its ample clean possessions, this seems like a game it can steal at home.
Michigan State vs. Northwestern
Betting Pick & Prediction
I expect the Spartans to take a lot of public money Sunday evening, so we may even get a bigger number before tip. I doubt many people are going to be looking to back the Wildcats after getting embarrassed by Illinois.
If Northwestern is hitting its open looks, I expect this home crowd to make life miserable for the Spartans.
This is one of the better spots of the entire weekend, and I'll happily back the Wildcats to bounce back at home. Let's hope Buie makes it a horror show for the Spartans' defense all evening long.
