Michigan Wolverines vs Minnesota Golden Gophers Prediction, 1/16/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Michigan Wolverines vs Minnesota Golden Gophers

Date: Saturday, January 16, 2021

Location: Williams Arena in Minneapolis, MN

TV: ESPN2

Odds/Point Spread: Michigan (-5)

The Michigan Wolverines (11-0) are headed to Williams Arena on Saturday where they'll take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers (10-4). The odds on this matchup have Michigan as 5-point favorites. The total opens at 148.

Michigan enters this game with a record of 11-0 so far this year. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.5 times per contest and as a basketball team they commit 14.3 fouls every game. As a team, Michigan is snagging 40.1 boards per game and has earned 193 dimes on the season, which is 38th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Wolverines are connecting on 37.3% on three-point shots (85 of 228) and 78.3% from the charity stripe. They average 82.0 points per game (29th in the nation) on 52.4% from the floor. Defensively, the Wolverines are forcing 10.7 turnovers per game while drawing 16.1 personal fouls. The Wolverines defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 36.9% (259 of 702) and they relinquish 30.4 boards per contest as a basketball team. They are ranked 93rd in D-1 in allowing assists to their opponents with 105 surrendered on the season. They relinquish 34.5% from 3-point land and they rank 76th in the country in PPG allowed (65.8).

The Michigan Wolverines stepped onto the hardwood against the Wisconsin Badgers and notched a win by a score of 77-54 in their last game. Michigan walked away from the contest with a 51.6% field goal percentage (32 of 62) and converted 9 out of their 16 shots from beyond the arc. At the charity stripe, the Wolverines converted 4 of 4 tries for a percentage of 100.0%. In relation to hauling in boards, they compiled 41 with 8 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 13 assists in the matchup as well as earning 6 steals and 9 blocked shots. Regarding the defense, Michigan let their opponent shoot 51.6% from the floor on 32 out of 62 shooting. Wisconsin distributed 8 dimes and had 4 steals in this contest. In addition, the Badgers collected 28 rebounds (7 offensive, 21 defensive) and earned 9 blocked shots. Wisconsin walked away from this one shooting 83.3% from the free throw line by making 5 of their 6 shots. They also made 9 of their 28 tries from 3-point range.

Mike Smith is one guy who was important in the matchup. He accumulated 16 points on 6 out of 9 shooting. He saw the court for 30 minutes played and also grabbed 2 boards. Smith finished the game at 66.7% from the floor and also totaled 6 dimes. One more player that was a determining factor in the game for the Wolverines was Franz Wagner. He grabbed 10 rebounds and accounted for 2 dimes. He finished the contest at 70.0% from the field for this game by going 7-of-10 (15 points). Overall, Wagner was on the court for 28 minutes.

Minnesota has a win-loss mark of 10-4 for the campaign. The Golden Gophers commit 18.2 fouls per game and they go 75.6% from the free throw line. They are earning an assist 15.6 times per game (70th in the nation) and they cough up possession 11.1 times per contest. Minnesota has totaled 1,107 pts so far this season (79.1 per game) and they pull down 38.9 boards per game. As an offensive unit, the Golden Gophers are connecting on 41.0% from the field, which ranks 295th in the nation. The Golden Gophers are ranked 263rd in Division 1 in points given up per game with 74.1. They have surrendered 14.8 assists and 40.6 total boards per game, which is 281st and 328th in the nation. The Minnesota defense gives up 32.5% on 3-point attempts (92 of 283) and their opponents are knocking down 71.7% of their free throw attempts. They have forced 13.4 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 42.1% from the floor (137th in college basketball).

In their last game, the Minnesota Golden Gophers took a loss by a score of 86-71 when they faced the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Golden Gophers corralled 23 defensive boards and 11 offensive boards totaling 34 in the game. They rejected 2 tries while getting 7 steals in the game. The Hawkeyes were called for 15 personal fouls in the matchup which got the Golden Gophers to the charity stripe for a total of 16 shots. They were able to bury 11 of them for a clip of 68.8%. Concerning three-point shots, Minnesota made 10 of 34 tries (29.4%). When the game finished, the Golden Gophers went 25 out of 71 from the floor which had them sitting at 35.2%. The Golden Gophers allowed the Hawkeyes to convert 31 of their 56 tries from the floor which had them at 55.4% for the contest. They finished shooting 64.3% from distance by shooting 9 out of 14 and ended up going 15 of 21 at the free throw line (71.4%). With respect to how they rebounded, Minnesota allowed Iowa to collect 39 in all (4 on the offensive side).

Marcus Carr was important for the Golden Gophers for the matchup. He buried 5 of 19 for the game giving him a rate of 26.3%, which got him 13 points. Carr totaled 4 boards in his 34 minutes and totaled 4 assists in the matchup. An additional guy that ended up playing a role for Minnesota was Both Gach. He notched 13 points in his 26 minutes played via 3 of 7 shooting in this game. Gach ended the game having shot 42.9% from the field in addition to contributing 3 dimes and 6 rebounds.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Minnesota (+5)

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